An Essex County man today admitted robbing an Investor’s Savings Bank in Irvington, New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Karim Brunson, 25, of Newark, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court to an indictment charging him with one count of armed bank robbery and one count of using a firearm during a crime of violence.
According to documents filed in this case and statements in court:
Brunson used a .357 caliber handgun to rob an Investor’s Savings Bank in Irvington on June 28, 2014. After entering the bank wearing a mask, Brunson approached a uniformed, off-duty Irvington police officer and pointed a handgun at his head.
Brunson then threw a plastic bag to one of the bank tellers and demanded that bank employees fill the bag with money. As Brunson threw the plastic bag to the teller, the off-duty police officer pushed Brunson’s arm down and fought him for the gun in the bank lobby.
Brunson was eventually subdued with the help of bank employees and another off-duty Irvington police officer who arrived at the bank during the robbery.
The bank robbery charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 25 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of using a firearm during a crime of violence carries a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for July 7, 2015.