DaQuaan Vaughn, Armed Robbery, New Jersey 2012

Armed Robbery Leaves Victim in Stitches

TRENTON, N.J. - In a brazen display of thuggery, a group of masked bandits stormed a Target store in Union, New Jersey, on Black Friday 2012, leaving a trail of destruction and terror in their wake.

The culprits, identified as DaQuaan Vaughn, 36, of Newark, New Jersey; Lavell Jones, 29, of East Orange, New Jersey; Darrell A. Carter, 25, of Irvington, New Jersey; and Maryland Liggins III, 30, of Newark, New Jersey, entered the store posing as shoppers, but their true intentions were far from innocuous.

According to sources, the group, armed with a firearm, restrained an employee in the bathroom and threatened him with the weapon, before proceeding to rob the store's cash room, making off with a staggering $54,000.

DaQuaan Vaughn, the ringleader of the group, pleaded guilty to a superseding information charging him with one count of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. He also pleaded guilty to an unrelated count of firearms trafficking.

U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced Vaughn's sentence, which includes 156 months in prison, five years of supervised release, and a restitution order of $54,000 to Target. The court also imposed the same restitution obligation on all defendants until the full amount is satisfied.

Liggins, who served as the getaway driver, has pleaded guilty to his role in the robbery and awaits sentencing. The FBI and Union Police Department were instrumental in the investigation, which was also aided by Target corporate security.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas P. Grippo represented the government in the case, while Defense Counsel Timothy Donohue Esq. represented Vaughn. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/pr/essex-county-man-sentenced-13-years-prison-armed-robbery-new-jersey-target-store-black