PHILADELPHIA, PA — On Tuesday, May 20, Willie Singletary, known as “Woo,” was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his involvement in a violent armed robbery and the orchestration of an attempted armed home invasion. U.S. District Court Judge Cynthia M. Rufe ordered the sentence to run consecutively to a 10-to-30-year sentence Singletary is already serving in Pennsylvania.
The sentencing follows Singletary’s October 2024 guilty plea to charges including conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, attempted Hobbs Act robbery, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
On November 20, 2019, Singletary, along with co-conspirators Shaquan Brown and another accomplice, robbed a Philadelphia laundromat at gunpoint. The assailants forcibly confined an employee in the basement, beating and restraining him, before proceeding to the residence above. There, they assaulted the business owner and another victim, stealing $30,000 earmarked for renovations before fleeing.
Singletary later directed Brown to target a separate individual for another robbery. This plan included installing a GPS tracker on the victim’s vehicle. On January 3, 2020, Brown and another associate attempted a break-in at the target’s Chester County residence, but their efforts were thwarted when the home’s alarm system triggered a police response. Brown was arrested at the scene, with authorities recovering a firearm, duct tape, and zip ties.
“What Singletary and his buddies put their victims through was terrifying,” said U.S. Attorney David Metcalf. “Being menaced at gunpoint and then physically assaulted is something they’ll likely never forget. All because the defendant would rather steal other people’s money than make an honest living of his own.”
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a federal initiative aimed at reducing violent crime and enhancing community safety through collaborative law enforcement efforts. Eric DeGree, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division, highlighted the importance of such partnerships, noting, “Singletary is now going to federal prison where he will no longer endanger his neighborhood.”
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