Two Newark Men Charged with Armed Robbery

NEWARK, NJ—Two Newark, New Jersey men are expected to appear in federal court this afternoon after being charged with armed robbery of the Golden Palace jewelry store in Orange, New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Charles Madison, 41, and Antonio Moore, 44, both of Newark, New Jersey, are charged by complaint with one count of robbery and one count of weapon possession. They will make a court appearance today at 1:30 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patty Shwartz in Newark federal court.

According to the complaint:

On August 6, 2012, Madison, Moore, and a co-conspirator agreed to rob the Golden Palace jewelry store. Madison agreed to supply the weapons and serve as the getaway driver, while Moore and the co-conspirator agreed to rob the store at gunpoint. In the early evening of August 6, Moore and the co-conspirator entered the store, pulled stockings over their faces, drew weapons, and demanded that the store’s employees empty all the jewelry from the display cases.

At one point during the robbery, Moore stated that the employees were taking too long to hand over the jewelry. Moore then approached a 22-year-old female employee and punched her in the head, knocking her against the wall and causing her to collapse to the ground.

After taking approximately $120,000 in jewelry from the store, Moore and the co-conspirator ran into the street and jumped into a white Ford pick-up truck driven by Madison.

Approximately one hour later, New Jersey State Police pulled over the vehicle on South Orange and Speedway avenues in Newark. All three men were inside. Troopers found dozens of pieces of gold jewelry scattered across the back seat of the car, along with two pairs of stockings and a pair of work gloves. Underneath the car, tucked into the spare tire wheel well, troopers retrieved two firearms, including a semi-automatic handgun with a large-capacity magazine.

If convicted on the robbery charge, both men face maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge David Velazquez in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s complaint.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew J. Bruck of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit in Newark.

The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.