A man convicted of three armed robberies received a longer prison sentence than an accomplice who pleaded guilty.
NEWARK -- A 22-year-old man was sentenced to 45 years in prison on Tuesday for three robberies he and an accomplice committed during a 12-hour spree, including a robbery in which a taxi driver was shot and killed.
Alchane Mayes must serve at least 34 years before he is eligible for parole under a sentence that Superior Court Judge Michael L. Ravin imposed, acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray said.
Mayes received a longer prison term than his accomplice, Jeshon Johnson, now 23, who pleaded guilty to charges of robbery and aggravated manslaughter in exchange for a 28-year sentence.
The manslaughter charge stemmed from the fatal June 7, 2012 shooting of taxicab driver Rochenel Guerrier, 49, an Irvington father of five.
On June 6, 2012, just hours hours before Mayes and Johnson got into Guerrier's taxi, prosecutors say the men robbed two men in two separate crimes.
Last June, a jury convicted Mayes of the three robberies but found him not guilty of murder and felony murder in the shooting of Guerrier, even though Johnson testified at the trial and said Mayes had fired shots at the driver.
Prosecutors alleged that Mayes and Johnson each fired shots at Guerrier, and that the driver, who worked for Family Cab service in Newark, was wounded twice by bullets from two different guns. He died several hours later at University Hospital in Newark.
Mayes' lawyer, Kevin Barry, argued that prosecutors built their case on testimony from Johnson, who lied to get his plea deal.
At the sentencing on Tuesday, prosecutors recommended a 70-year sentence and the defense attorney requested a 10-year term.
"He robbed three different people at gunpoint during a crime spree with his friend and the sentence imposed sends a clear message that such violence will not be tolerated," said Assistant Prosecutor Austin Edwards, who tried the case with Assistant Prosecutor Margarita Rivera.
"While we are disappointed that Mayes was not convicted of the murder - because we believe the evidence was overwhelming - today's result ensures that a violent and dangerous offender will be off the streets of Newark for a very long time," Edwards said.
Mayes must serve 85 percent of his sentence, or 34 years, before he is eligible for parole, Murray said.
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