So it turns out it was a good thing after all. Its better the ex-mayor-thug got jumped on rather than an innocent person.

At least he is off the streets for a few days. He is going to make sure he does a back-ground check before he strikes next time.

why do people wear gold chains? what is the freaking purpose of wearing valuable metals that make you a target of criminals? in this day and age? wearing gold is just plain stupid

Amazing how the police will go to extraordinary lengths to solve this crime, yet when we aren't an ex.mayor its just a 'paper job' for an insurance claim.

I thought chain snatching was a thing of the past. How dumb of him to use the PATH as his get away. And to randomly rob someone off the street is equaling dumb.

Newark man arrested, charged with robbing ex-mayor Sharpe James

Print By Seth Augenstein/The Star-Ledger
April 12, 2013


Newark mugging suspect Alhafeez Williams, left, and the man he allegedly robbed - former Newark Mayor Sharpe James, right.

Newark Police and AP file photo
NEWARK ? A young Newark man who allegedly robbed former Newark Mayor Sharpe James of a gold chain Thursday was arrested and charged early this morning, police said.

Alhafeez Williams, 20, was arrested and charged with robbery at about 2 a.m. by Newark police, after he had been apprehended at a PATH station in New York, Newark police said.

Williams, who has several felony convictions, is accused of attacking the 78-year-old James from behind on Bergen Street, putting him in a choke hold and yanking off a gold chain before fleeing, said Newark police Sgt. Ronald Glover.

James was not hurt during the incident, but police scoured the area for Williams, who later contacted police and said he was prepared to surrender, Glover added.

At the PATH station, Williams allegedly asked two Port Authority police officers to get a ride back to Newark to meet his parole officer, said Steve Coleman, a Port Authority spokesman. But the officers checked on the man's identity and found the man was the prime suspect in the high-profile robbery, Coleman said. They accompanied him on the PATH train, which was met by Newark police officers upon its arrival in Hoboken, he added.

The gold chain was found in the possession of Williams' girlfriend, but she was not charged, the Port Authority added.

Authorities called the effort to catch the alleged robber "relentless."

"I am pleased that through the relentless efforts of our detectives assigned to the Robbery Squad and the assistance of the community we were able to make a swift identification and apprehension in this case," said Samuel DeMaio, Newark?s police director.

Williams' bail was set at $50,000 with no 10-percent cash option, Glover added.

James was Newark's mayor from 1986 to 2006. He also held a state senate seat from 1999 to 2008. In April 2008, he was convicted of five counts of fraud by a federal jury and was sentenced to 27 months in prison.