FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
Bedford-Stuyvesant Man Sentenced to 31 Years in Prison for Robbing
Four Women at Gunpoint in Windsor Terrace and Kensington
Defendant Followed Victims Walking Alone at Night;
Pistol-whipped One Victim before Robbing Her
Acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced today that a 31-year-old Bedford-Stuyvesant man has been sentenced to 31 years in prison for a spree of armed robberies over a nine-day period in Windsor Terrace and Kensington, during which he robbed four women at gunpoint, including one whom he pistol-whipped in the head.
Acting District Attorney Gonzalez said, “For more than a week, this defendant preyed upon vulnerable women walking alone at night, robbing and terrorizing them at gunpoint. Such cowardly acts of violence have no place on the streets of Brooklyn. Today’s sentence ensures that this defendant will be off of our streets and in prison for a very long time.”
The Acting District Attorney identified the defendant as Justin Farrow, 31, of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. He was sentenced today by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Deborah Dowling to 31 years in prison and five years’ post-release supervision. The defendant was convicted of four counts of first-degree robbery, second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, second-degree assault and three counts of fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property following a jury trial in May.
The Acting District Attorney said that, according to trial testimony, in four separate incidents between August 20 and August 29, 2015, the defendant robbed four women who were walking alone at night in Windsor Terrace and Kensington, Brooklyn. The defendant committed all of the robberies in a similar fashion, approaching his victims – in most cases from behind – brandishing a silver handgun, stealing property and telling his victims to walk away and not look back. After each robbery, according to video surveillance, the defendant entered the Fort Hamilton Parkway subway station using a MetroCard he stole from his first victim. The robberies occurred as follows:
- On August 20, 2015, at approximately 2:15 a.m., at the corner of Caton Avenue and East 7th Street, the defendant approached a 58-year-old woman from behind, brandished a silver handgun and demanded her purse and phone. When the victim did not immediately comply, the defendant threatened her with his gun, at which point the victim surrendered her property, including a monthly MetroCard, which was registered to her. The defendant then fled to the Fort Hamilton Parkway subway station, where he used the recently stolen MetroCard. According to video surveillance, he was wearing a multi-colored shirt with a fleur-de-lis pattern.
- On August 23, 2015, at approximately 1:30 a.m., in front of 115 East 4th Street, the defendant approached a 35-year-old woman from behind, brandished his gun and demanded her bag and phone. The victim surrendered the items and the defendant fled to the subway station where, according to video surveillance, he was again wearing the same distinct shirt.
- On August 27, 2015, at approximately 12:45 a.m., at the corner of Ocean Parkway and Caton Avenue, the defendant approached a 28-year-old woman from behind, brandished a gun and demanded her property. When the victim did not immediately comply, the defendant hit her repeatedly with the butt of the gun, causing injuries to her ear, head and hand. The victim surrendered her property, including a tote bag, and the defendant fled to the subway station.
- On August 29, 2015, shortly before 11:30 p.m., near 19th Street and Sealy Street, the victim, a 20-year-old woman, passed the defendant on the street as they walked in opposite directions. After passing, unbeknownst to the victim, the defendant turned and began to follow her. A few minutes later, at approximately 11:30 p.m., the defendant approached the victim from behind, removed a gun from a duffel bag and put the gun to her ribs, demanding she surrender her property. The defendant then physically searched the victim and proceeded to steal her cellphone and a MetroCard. The defendant used his gun to push the victim away and ordered her not to look back. He then fled and entered the Fort Hamilton Parkway subway station, once again wearing the same multi-colored, patterned shirt.
The Acting District Attorney said that, according to trial testimony, a few days later, on September 4, 2015, at approximately 11 p.m., a man who had witnessed the defendant fleeing on August 29 saw the defendant near Vanderbilt Street and Prospect Park Southwest and called 911. Responding New York City Police Department officers chased and quickly arrested the defendant, but not before he removed a plastic bag containing an object from a duffel bag he was carrying and threw it over a nearby fence. The officers recovered the bag, which contained a loaded silver .9 millimeter handgun registered to the defendant.
The defendant also was in possession of MetroCards belonging to three of his victims, including the card he stole on August 20 and used to enter the subway after each robbery. Further, at the time of arrest, the defendant was wearing a multi-colored shirt with a fleur-de-lis pattern, virtually identical to the shirt he was wearing following three of the robberies.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Jacob Uriel and Assistant District Attorney Eva Oginar, of the District Attorney’s Trial Bureau Grey Zone, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Danielle Eaddy, Chief.
#