District Man Sentenced to 19 Years in Prison For Series of Robberies and Home Invasions

           WASHINGTON - Robert Williams, 23, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to a 19-year prison term on charges stemming from a series of robberies and home invasions that he carried out in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced today.

            Williams was sentenced on Nov. 30, 2016, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, by the Honorable Zoe Bush. Upon completion of his prison term, he will be placed on 13 years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Dec. 19, 2014, at approximately 5:45 p.m., Williams and a second individual carried out a home invasion in the 1500 block of Oates Street NE. The victim, a 70-year-old man, was home alone at the time. During the ordeal, the victim was gagged, bound and placed in a closet.  Williams and his accomplice took over $700, the victim’s car, and two flat-screen televisions.  Williams pled guilty in October 2016 to a charge of second-degree burglary in this incident. No one else has been charged in this case.

        The second incident took place on April 28, 2015, at approximately 12:50 p.m. According to the government’s evidence, Williams entered an apartment in the 1700 block of Benning Road NE as the two victims were in the process of moving out. Masked, he approached the first victim and, when he learned that she did not have any money, struck her in the face with his handgun, causing a significant wound to her forehead.  He then robbed the second victim of approximately $150. Surveillance video captured Williams entering and running out of the apartment building. When apprehended hours later, Williams was wearing the same clothing that he wore when he committed the crime and on video. Williams was found guilty by a jury in July 2016 of armed robbery, first-degree burglary, assault with intent to rob, and various firearms offenses for the crimes committed that day.

          The third incident occurred on Nov. 25, 2015, at approximately 9 a.m. Williams robbed a restaurant manager at gunpoint outside the establishment in the 1500 block of Maryland Avenue NE. He took about $200 in cash and the victim’s cellphone. Williams pled guilty in October 2016 to a charge of armed robbery for this attack.

          In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Damien Diggs, who secured the indictment, and Litigation Technology Assistant Aneela Bhatia. Finally, he commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Kamil E. Shields, who prosecuted the case at trial and obtained the guilty pleas.