Man Robbed 3 North Jersey Gas Stations, Stores In 1 Day: Officials

PASSAIC COUNTY — A 24-year-old man has been arrested in Virginia and charged with robbing three North Jersey gas stations and stores at gunpoint, prosecutors said.

The armed robberies took place on the same day back in February at businesses in Bergen and Passaic Counties, according to the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. Husem Nasri, 24, of Elmwood Park, was arrested in Virgina on Tuesday and charged in the robberies.

The string of robberies on Monday, Feb. 5 began when someone robbed a gas station at 404 Route 17 North in Hasbrouck Heights, prosecutors said.

"Police discovered that a suspect attempted to rob the gas station attendant, struck him with a firearm, and fled the scene," prosecutors said Wednesday.

While police were on the scene, another attempted armed robbery occurred at a gas station located at 1201 Van Houten Ave. in Clifton, in which a suspect pointed a firearm at the gas station attendant.

The attendant was able to secure himself in the gas station building, and the suspect fled the scene, prosecutors said.

In the afternoon, the Paterson Police Department responded to an armed robbery at a grocery store located at 54 North Third St. According to store employees, the suspect pointed a firearm at them, demanded money, and threatened to kill them.

"Detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office coordinated with the Clifton and Paterson police departments, and a thorough review of surveillance video from the three robbery scenes revealed that the suspect in all the incidents was wearing similar clothing and utilized a similar vehicle," prosecutors said.

Detectives were able to identify the suspect’s vehicle, a black Dodge Challenger stolen in New York City on Feb. 2, 2024.

On May 15, Nasri was charged with four counts of first-degree armed robbery, three counts of second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, as well as several charges of assault, terroristic threats, and theft. But he had not yet been apprehended.

On Tuesday, May 28, 2024, detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Investigations Squad located and apprehended Nasri in Alexandria, Va., with the assistance of the FBI North Jersey Violent Crimes Task Force and the FBI North Virginia Resident Agency, Washington Field Office.

Nasri is in jail at the Alexandria detention center, where he will remain as he awaits extradition to New Jersey.