City Man Who Robbed Northeast Philadelphia Business, Carjacked a Mother and Daughter Outside Their Home Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Amir Harvey, 25, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Paul S. Diamond to 96 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and restitution of $717, in connection with the armed robbery of a commercial business and a carjacking, both in Northeast Philadelphia.

Harvey was arrested and charged by complaint in September of 2022 and then indicted in October of that year. In October 2024, he pleaded guilty to Hobbs Act robbery, carjacking, and possession of ammunition by a felon.

As detailed in court filings and admitted to by the defendant, on September 9, 2022, at approximately 11 p.m., he and three others approached the Hook and Reel restaurant, located at 9763 Roosevelt Boulevard. Upon encountering an employee of the restaurant outside, Harvey entered and held the employee at gunpoint, ransacked the office, stole about $400 from the cash drawers, and fled.

In the early morning hours of September 19, 2022, Philadelphia police officers responded to a report of a robbery in progress on the 8900 block of Maxwell Place, where the victim reported that her car had just been stolen by an armed individual as she and her teenage daughter were about to leave for school.

The victim stated that around 6:15 a.m., she started her vehicle using an application on her cell phone. A short time later, she and her daughter exited their house and walked to the car parked in the front driveway, when they were approached by an armed individual, later identified as the defendant, who pointed an imitation firearm, fitted with a high-capacity magazine, at their heads.

The defendant grabbed the victim’s keys and purse and sped away in her vehicle. The victim then used its location tracking feature on her cell phone app and informed police, who responded to that location on the 2000 block of Griffith Street, about 2½ miles from the victim’s home. Using neighborhood video surveillance footage, investigators traced the movement of the victim’s vehicle and the defendant to a nearby apartment complex.

“This armed robbery and carjacking were violent crimes targeting absolutely innocent victims,” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “Amir Harvey ambushed a restaurant employee on a break, and a mother and daughter heading off to school. Offenses like these inject fear into our community and affect our quality of life. The Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force is working every day to hold perpetrators accountable. Public safety is our top priority.”

“Amir Harvey is going to federal prison for many years for this brazen and calculated carjacking and robbery,” said Eric DeGree, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “We hope this case deters those willing to use violence in our community. Working with our partners in our Carjacking Task Force and applying ATF’s unique forensic and investigative tools, we will continue to prevent and prosecute violent crime and make our streets safer.”

The swift action to investigate and federally charge this defendant is the work of the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, which comprises members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crime Unit; the FBI; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department. The goal of the Task Force is to stem the wave of armed carjackings and violent crimes through investigative and enforcement techniques meant to identify, and refer for federal prosecution, all who terrorize innocent victims through commission of these offenses within Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Robert E. Eckert and Lauren E. Stram.