All 4 charged are from Houston, Texas.
By The American Bazaar Staff
WASHINGTON, DC: Four people have been arrested and charged with a series of home invasions, assaults and robberies targeting Indian families in Middlesex County, New Jersey.
The suspects, who are all from Houston, are also believed to have struck homes in Georgia, Michigan, New York and Texas, said Andrew Carey, the Middlesex County prosecutor, reported The New York Times.
The defendants are Chaka Castro, 39; Juan Olaya, 34; Octavius Scott, 22; and Johnisha Williams, 19, prosecutors said. Carey said Castro orchestrated the robberies, finding the victims’ addresses and ordering the home invasions, but she was not at any of the New Jersey crime scenes.
Carey, who spoke at a news conference on Monday, said the ring was caught in Texas last week after his office had identified its members. The suspects, charged with crimes including first-degree kidnapping, first-degree robbery and third-degree terroristic threats, had singled out Indian-Americans for the home invasions and robberies in New Jersey.
The Dallas Morning News reported last week that the police had tracked the suspects through a stolen cellphone in Allen, Texas.
“We believe we’ve shut it down,” Carey said after the news conference, though he added that residents in New Jersey’s large Indian-American population should remain vigilant. He also said that the investigation, which involved state and federal authorities, was continuing and that more arrests could be made.
From October 20 to November 29, five Indian-American families, all living in middle-class or upper-income suburban homes in Old Bridge, Edison and South Plainfield, N.J., were attacked. The assailants burst through doors, waved and pointed guns, bound family members with duct tape, punched and kicked them, and took off with jewelry, cash and electronics, the authorities and the victims have said.
One family in Edison reported being robbed of tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of necklaces, rings, earrings and pendants, the Times report said.
According to the prosecutor, Scott and Olaya entered the homes at gunpoint while Williams waited outside in a getaway car. Scott and Olaya smashed cellphones and threatened homeowners after duct taping them, punching them and kicking them, reported The Star-Ledger.
The kidnapping charges carry penalties of up to 30 years. The robbery charges count for 20-year terms.
Carey said it was too early to determine whether the office would pursue hate-crimes charges, the Star-Ledger report said.
“Hate crimes require a specific intent,” Carey said. “That is something we will be considering and looking at. But I assure you being charged with first-degree robbery is quite significant at this point.”