District Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Burglaries
- Defendant Broke Into Rooftop Bar, Assaulted Manager With a Knife -

     WASHINGTON - Reginald D. Williams, 51, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a 10-year prison term for repeated burglaries of a rooftop bar in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Williams pled guilty in December 2011 to two counts of second-degree burglary and one count of carrying a dangerous weapon. He was sentenced by the Honorable Ronna L. Beck in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

     According to the government’s evidence, during the summer of 2010, Williams repeatedly crawled up to the rooftop bar of a restaurant in the 1600 block of U Street NW, and stole alcohol that was stored there. Surveillance footage captured his actions after the bar had closed.

     On August 15, 2010, several employees remained behind after closing time in an effort to apprehend the person who was repeatedly breaking into the establishment. About 4 a.m., they noticed that the rooftop lights had suddenly gone out, and two of the employees went to investigate. They spotted the defendant drinking a bottle of beer at the bar and recognized him from the video footage from the previous occasions. When Williams saw them, he fled from the bar, but he was cornered by other employees who met him in the alley below.

     Williams struggled with the employees and pulled out a filet knife from a backpack he had been carrying. He swung with the knife at the bar manager, but missed. The manager knocked him to the ground and held him for the responding police officers. The officers discovered that a television mounted behind the bar had been removed and placed on the bar by the defendant. Williams previously had been convicted in a 2004 burglary at the same establishment.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department officers who investigated the case, particularly the arresting officer, Adam Crist. He also recognized the assistance of Jennifer Clark, the Victim/Witness Advocate in this case. Finally, he expressed his appreciation to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Miller, Edward A. O’Connell, and Trevor N. McFadden of the Second District Felony Major Crimes Unit, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

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