ELIZABETH, NJ — A Rahway man was arrested on Thursday, March 24, and a co-conspirator remains at large after they were criminally charged with an armed home invasion robbery in Elizabeth on Wednesday, March 2, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel, Elizabeth Police Director Earl J. Graves and Elizabeth Police Chief Giacomo Sacca jointly announced on Friday, April 1.
Herby Desir, 34, of Rahway, and Emmanuel Rivera, 33, of Carteret, are both charged with three counts of first-degree robbery, one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, one count of possession of a firearm for unlawful purposes, one count of third-degree criminal restraint and one count of second-degree conspiracy in connection with the home invasion.
On Wednesday, March 2, shortly after 11 a.m., members of the Elizabeth Police Department responded to a home on Summit Road, near the intersection of Colonia Road, and found the elderly homeowner — who had been restrained by the assailants — with another resident who had discovered the victim in the home and cut her loose. The homeowner had been held at gunpoint during the robbery, from which Desir and Rivera fled, making off with the victim’s valuables.
A joint investigation by the Elizabeth Police Department and the Union County Prosecutor’s Office Intelligence Driven Prosecution Unit, and with the assistance of the Rahway Police Department, resulted in the identification of Desir and Rivera as the robbery suspects. Desir was arrested on Thursday, March 24, in Rahway without incident. He remains in the Union County Jail pending further court proceedings. Rivera remains at large.
Anyone with information about this matter or the whereabouts of Rivera is urged to contact Elizabeth Police Detective Louis Demondo at 908-558-2100 or Prosecutor’s Office Detective Katelyn Prata at 908-447-6195. Anyone coming into contact with Rivera should refrain from approaching him and should contact the police immediately.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously by phone at 908-654-8477 or online at www.uctip.org; submission of tips made in this fashion that result in an indictment and conviction can be eligible for a reward of as much as $10,000 via the Union County Crime Stoppers.
Convictions on crimes of the first degree are commonly punishable by terms of between 10 and 20 years in state prison. Second-degree crimes carry terms of between 5 and 10 years, and those of the third degree, between 3 and 5 years.
These criminal charges are merely accusations. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proved guilty in a court of law.
Photos Courtesy of Mike Sheets