NEWARK – Two Newark men made court appearances March 9 on charges stemming from a Feb. 22, 2021, attempted carjacking in Newark during which a firearm was discharged, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Antwan Malone, 34, and Dawan Walker, 24, both of Newark, are charged by complaint with one count of attempted carjacking and one count of discharging of a firearm during a crime of violence. They appeared by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Falk and were detained.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: On Feb. 22, 2021, law enforcement officers responded to the area of the I-78 West entrance ramp and Irvine Turner Boulevard in Newark on a report of an attempted carjacking with a weapon. They learned that Malone and Walker had pulled up beside a blue BMW M5 SUV that was stopped at a stop light and blocked the BMW’s ability to enter I-78.
Malone approached the vehicle brandishing a handgun, and then pointed the gun at the driver’s face while repeatedly telling the driver to either exit the vehicle or Malone would shoot them. At that point, the driver was able to escape by ramming the BMW into Malone and Walker’s vehicle and entering the I-78 entrance ramp. Malone fired two shots at the BMW.
The count of attempted carjacking carries a maximum potential sentence of 15 years in prison. The count of discharging of a firearm during a crime of violence is punishable by a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison, which must run consecutively to any term of imprisonment imposed on any other charges.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan; the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II; special agents of the DEA, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark; and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark, with the investigation leading to the charges and arrests.
This case is part of the Violent Crime Initiative (VCI), which was formed in August 2017 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, and the City of Newark’s Department of Public Safety for the purpose of combatting violent crime in and around Newark.
As part of this partnership, federal, state, county, and city agencies collaborate and pool resources to prosecute violent offenders who endanger the safety of the community.
VCI is composed of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the ATF, the DEA, the U.S. Marshals, the Newark Department of Public Safety, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, N.J. State Parole, Union County Jail, N.J. State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center/Real Time Crime Center, N.J. Department of Corrections, the East Orange Police Department, and the Irvington Police Department.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney George L. Brandley of the OCEDTF Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
