BOSTON (WHDH) - A 33-year-old man from Boston is now facing a federal charge, in addition to state charges for a string of armed robberies that affected businesses in both Jamaica Plain and Dorchester.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced that Akeem Lahens was charged with one count of Affecting Commerce by Armed Robbery, months after the robberies occurred in April and May 2023.
The announcement came as Lahens remains in state custody, following his arrest back on May 5, after both a Boost Mobile and Cricket Wireless in Jamaica Plain were robbed in late April by a suspect armed with two large knives.
A similar robbery also took place at a Dunkin Donuts in Dorchester a day before Lahens’s arrest.
“Law enforcement believed that the robberies were connected and the perpetrator was likely the same person, as the suspect’s appearance in surveillance footage and witnesses descriptions was the same,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated in a news release. “Additionally, in each of the robberies, the suspect allegedly brandished two large knives, made a verbal demand for money, forcibly took money from the store and forced or attempted to force the victims into a rear room or bathroom of the store.”
Authorities went on to search Lahens’s home and came across two knives as well as sandals that were allegedly worn by the suspect during the Boost Mobile robbery on April 26.
According to court records cited in the news release, the aforementioned robberies all took place while Lahens was on federal supervised release. The 33 year old previously pled guilty in the Southern District of New York on April 26, 2021, to five counts of robbery, and was sentenced to 30 months of prison and three years of supervised release.
In addition to state charges that include armed robbery and kidnapping, the new federal charge Lahens faces “provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He is expected to appear in federal court “in the near future,” according to the news release.
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