Judge Sends Armed Robber to Prison for 30 Years

PHILADELPHIA—Hakeem Paris, 23, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to 30 years and one month in prison for two armed robberies that he committed in 2010. A federal jury convicted Paris on December 12, 2012, of one count of conspiracy to commit robbery which interfered with interstate commerce, one count of robbery which interfered with interstate commerce, one count of attempted robbery which interfered with interstate commerce, two counts of using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

On May 10, 2010, Paris conspired with another person to commit a gun-point robbery of Bridesburg Pizza, located at 4776 Richmond Street in Philadelphia, where he ordered the employees of the pizza shop to move to the back of the store while holding them at gunpoint. One of the victims later stated, “I thought we were dead. I truly believed he was going to kill all of us because he kept saying he was going to shoot us.” Less than two weeks later, on May 23, 2010, he attempted to rob the Wawa convenience store located at 4371 Richmond Street in Philadelphia.

In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Mary McLaughlin ordered three years of supervised release and a $600 special assessment.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas M. Zaleski.