An Elizabeth man has been charged in connection with his commission of a string of robberies in New Jersey, including a bank robbery and two armed robberies of convenience stores, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today.
Federal officials said Mr. Dayshawn Brimfield, 30, is charged by complaint with one count of bank robbery, two counts of Hobbs Act robbery, one count of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and one count of interstate transportation of stolen property.
He appeared by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lois H. Goodman and was detained.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On April 2, 2021, a man dressed in dark clothing walked into a Hazlet, New Jersey, bank and handed a note to an employee.
In the note, the man claimed to have a gun and threatened to kill the employee if the employee did not give him money.
The employee turned over $750, which the man took before fleeing. Law enforcement later identified Brimfield’s palmprint on the note.
On April 20, 2021, Brimfield entered an Aberdeen, New Jersey, convenience store wearing dark clothing and a mask that partially covered his face.
Brimfield approached an employee behind the counter and ordered him to the ground while brandishing a handgun.
The employee complied, and Brimfield took approximately $450 from the store’s cash registers.
Law enforcement reviewed security camera footage of the robbery and identified Brimfield as the robber. Security cameras also captured an older-model green Honda Civic park outside of the store immediately prior to the robbery.
On April 22, 2021, Brimfield, who was wearing a dark jacket with light stains and a mask, approached an employee of a South Plainfield, New Jersey, convenience store behind the counter and brandished a handgun.
Brimfield demanded the employee’s wallet and cellphone, and the employee handed them over.
The employee’s wallet contained his driver’s license, Social Security card and cash. Brimfield ordered the man to the ground as he took more than $2,000 from the store.
Brimfield left the store and walked in the direction of a neighboring business.
Law enforcement reviewed security camera footage from that neighboring business.
Immediately prior to the robbery, security cameras captured Brimfield driving a green Honda Civic that had been stolen in Elizabeth four to five days earlier and wearing a knit New England Patriots hat.
On April 25, 2021, Nebraska State Patrol Officers arrested Brimfield after he led them on a five-mile pursuit in the stolen Civic.
Law enforcement seized the South Plainfield convenience store employee’s driver’s license and Social Security card, clothing consistent with the clothing Brimfield wore during both convenience store robberies, and a knit New England Patriots hat from the Civic.
The bank robbery and Hobbs Act robbery charges each carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
The using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000.
The interstate transportation of stolen property charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000.