Asbury Park Man Pleads Guilty To Armed Robbery & Kidnapping
Wadud faces 18 years for November 2016 crime that began in Asbury Park & culminated in Neptune
An Asbury Park man pleaded guilty Friday to charges of armed robbery and kidnapping in connection to November 2016 Neptune Township and Asbury Park crimes, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced via a written statement Tuesday afternoon.
Hakiem K. Wadud, 24, of Asbury Park, pleaded guilty to first degree armed robbery and first degree kidnapping before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Ellen Torregrossa-O’Connor.
Officials said that on Nov 13, 2016 at approximately 11 p.m., Neptune Township police responded to the report of a man with a gun at the Wawa convenience store, located at Routes 35 and 33.
A joint investigation by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Neptune Township and Asbury Park Police departments revealed that the robbery culminated at the Wawa but began in Asbury Park, when Wadud entered a car belonging to the two victims, the statement said. Shortly after entering the vehicle, Wadud, brandishing a firearm, demanded money from both occupants.
After taking the money, he directed the driver to take him to the Wawa in Neptune Township so one of the victims could access his bank account for additional money, according to the statement. Once at Wawa, the suspect accompanied one of the victims into the store and fled shortly thereafter.
Police were again called to the same Wawa around 4 a.m. the next day after a Bradley Beach police officer, who happened to be shopping there at that time, was alerted to the suspect’s presence by a store employee. That officer detained Wadud until Asbury Park and Neptune Township police officers arrived.
Wadud’s sentencing is scheduled for July 20. Under the terms of a plea agreement, Wadud faces 18 years, pursuant to the “No Early Release Act that would require him to serve 85 percent of the sentence before being eligible for parole. The two charges normally carry an up to 50 year prison sentence.
He remains in custody at Monmouth County Jail and is represented by Robert Konzelmann of Howell Township. The case is assigned to Assistant Prosecutor Martha Nye.
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