Philly Gunman Moore Admits to Latino Business Robbery Spree

PHILADELPHIA – Acia Moore, 20, of Philadelphia, PA, has confessed to a string of armed robberies targeting small businesses in the city’s Feltonville and Juniata neighborhoods. Moore pleaded guilty today to two counts of attempted Hobbs Act robbery, one count of Hobbs Act robbery, and one count of carrying and using a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence. The robberies, carried out with co-defendant Omar White-Davis, 29, of Philadelphia, terrorized local business owners over a two-week period in late November and early December 2021.

According to federal prosecutors, Moore and White-Davis collectively stole approximately $3,100. The spree began November 21, 2021, with an attempted robbery at the Ariel Grocery on the 2000 block of E. Pacific Street. Moore then robbed the Al-Molhem Store, 400 block of E. Wyoming Avenue, on December 1st. The pair then hit Café Tinto, 100 block of E. Wyoming Avenue, on December 2nd. But Moore wasn’t finished with Café Tinto – he returned less than 48 hours later, on December 4th, and robbed it again. The final days of the spree saw Moore robbing the Leslie Mini Market, 4200 block of Bodine Street, and a failed attempt to rob Hernandez Food and Deli Market, 4500 block of D Street, alongside White-Davis on December 6th.

“These defendants robbed small local businesses in the Feltonville and Juniata neighborhoods,” stated U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero. “They were so brazen that they targeted the same business twice in two days.” Romero emphasized the dedication of her office to neighborhood safety and collaboration with law enforcement partners. The repeated targeting of Café Tinto highlights the callous disregard for the victims and their livelihoods.

Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division, described the duo’s actions as a “crime spree” designed to instill fear. “Moore and his co-defendant went on a crime spree, targeting neighborhood businesses six times in just over two weeks and threatening their victims at gunpoint to terrify them into compliance,” she said. “Now that they’ve admitted to their crimes, they’ll be off the street and not able to menace innocent people who are just trying to make a living.”

Moore is scheduled to be sentenced on April 10, 2023, before the Honorable Gerald A. McHugh. The case is a part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a federal initiative aimed at reducing violent crime through collaborative law enforcement efforts. The Department of Justice revitalized PSN in 2017, focusing on the prosecution of violent offenders.

The investigation was a joint effort by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert is prosecuting the case. While this plea brings a measure of closure to these victims, Grimy Times will continue to follow the case of Omar White-Davis and report on any further developments in this disturbing pattern of violence against Philadelphia’s small businesses.