U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero | U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero has announced that Zamer Williams, a 19-year-old from Camden, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to charges related to two carjackings in South Philadelphia. The plea was entered before United States District Court Chief Judge Mitchell S. Goldberg and includes two counts of carjacking and one count of carrying, using, and brandishing a firearm during the commission of a violent crime.
The charges stem from incidents that occurred in November 2023. According to court documents, on November 11, 2023, an Uber driver was carjacked at gunpoint outside an Ikea store on Columbus Boulevard. Williams and an accomplice approached the driver after he had stepped out of his vehicle and demanded his keys. The suspects then fled in the driver's Mazda CX-5.
Two days later, another incident took place at a Wawa on Columbus Boulevard. A woman left her Ford Fusion SE running while she went inside the store. She attempted to confront Williams as he got into her car but had to let go after being dragged for several feet when he drove away.
Williams is scheduled for sentencing on March 25, 2025. He faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment with a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years.
This case falls under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which aims to reduce violent crime through collaboration between law enforcement agencies and communities. The program emphasizes building trust within communities, supporting violence prevention initiatives, setting strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring outcomes.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives along with the Philadelphia Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Kwambina I. Coker and Robert E. Eckert are prosecuting the case.
