Alleged Wheelman Arrested in Armed Robbery of Woodbridge T-Mobile

Two New York men were arrested Wednesday morning in connection with a pair of armed robberies of T-Mobile stores, including one in Woodbridge, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Unique Randolph, 26, and Sulayman Graham, 30, both of Brooklyn, N.Y., are charged in separate criminal complaints with one count each of committing a Hobbs Act robbery. Randolph also faces one count of using a firearm while committing a robbery. Both defendants were scheduled to appear Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael A. Hammer in Newark federal court.

U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said the FBI is conducting a probe of armed robberies that took place in Bergen, Middlesex and Union counties between May 2012 and January 2013, including one at the Woodbridge T-Mobile on Oct. 2, 2012.

Four men—Terrell McQueen, Leonard Arrington, Carl Williams and Eric Williams (no relation) —have already been indicted as a result of the investigation, he said, adding that charges against them are pending.

Graham's charges stem from the Oct. 2 incident at the Woodbridge T-Mobile. According to the complaint, Arrington, carrying a gun, entered the store with another man. After locking the front door, the men took the employees to the back of the store, tied them up and stole approximately 40 cell phones, Fishman said. One of the robbers then called the getaway driver, Graham, who drove them away in a Land Rover, Fishman said.

Randolph was cited for his alleged role in robbing a Paramus T-Mobile on Jan. 16. The complaint said Randolph and another man entered the store, tied up two employees and forced them to lie on the floor. They allegedly forced a third employee at gunpoint to fill two laundry bags with more than 70 cell phones and then tied him up. When a UPS worker walked into the store, that person was forced at gunpoint to join the restrained T-Mobile employees, Fishman said.

A Hobbs Act robbery charge specifically targets commercial robberies where violence or the threat of violence is involved. The counts being held against Graham and Randolph could carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Randolph's weapons charge carries the possibility of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years, which must run consecutively to one another and to any other prison term.

Each of the counts also carries a maximum fine of $250,000.