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Press Release

Defendant Sentenced To 18 Years In Prison For 2011 Murder Of Joshua Rubin

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that MICHAEL MAZUR was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Jed S. Rakoff to 216 months in prison for his role in the October 31, 2011, murder of Joshua Rubin in Brooklyn, New York.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Michael Mazur participated in the robbery that led to the murder of Joshua Rubin, and then he and his codefendants put Rubin’s body in the trunk of a car, drove it to Pennsylvania, dumped it in a garbage can, and set it afire to cover up the crime.  Thanks to our law enforcement partners and the Special Agents of my Office, Mazur will now serve a lengthy prison sentence for his callous crime.” 

According to the allegations in the Indictment and other documents filed in federal court, as well as statements made in public court proceedings:

On or about October 31, 2011, MICHAEL MAZUR, Kevin Taylor, and Gary Robles agreed to rob Joshua Rubin of a pound of marijuana.  Robles agreed to bring a firearm to the robbery.  Taylor lured Rubin to a Brooklyn apartment where, under the guise of purchasing the marijuana, the trio planned to rob Rubin of the drugs.  On the night of the robbery, Taylor and Robles waited inside the apartment while MAZUR was positioned outside to serve as a lookout.  After Rubin entered the apartment, Taylor and Robles demanded that Rubin surrender the marijuana.  When Rubin refused, Robles shot and killed Rubin.

After the murder, MAZUR, Taylor, and Robles placed Rubin’s body into the trunk of a car and drove to rural Pennsylvania.  There, MAZUR, Taylor, and Robles put Rubin’s body in a garbage can, doused it with an accelerant, and set the body on fire.  MAZUR, Taylor, and Robles then drove back to New York in the early morning hours of November 1, 2011.  Over 230 pounds of marijuana and approximately $200,000 were found in MAZUR’S residence at the time of his arrest.

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MAZUR, 27, pled guilty to one count of Hobbs Act robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1951, and in connection with his guilty plea admitted to his role in the murder.  In addition to his prison sentence, MAZUR, was sentenced to three years of supervised release.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New York City Police Department, and the Special Agents of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.  He also thanked the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the South Whitehall Township Police Department for their assistance in the investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit.  Assistant United States Attorneys Alexandra N. Rothman, Mollie Bracewell, and Dominic A. Gentile are in charge of the prosecution.

Contact

Nicholas Biase, James Margolin
(212) 637-2600

Updated December 6, 2021

Topic
Violent Crime
Press Release Number: 21-346