Feds charge 6 in racially-motivated home invasions in Michigan, Texas

Feds say armed robbers targeted Asian-American, Indian-American families in Ann Arbor

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Six people have been charged for allegedly being part of an armed robbery crew which invaded homes in Michigan and Texas, specifically targeting homes of people with Indian and Asian ancestry.

According to a federal indictment, the defendants committed four armed home invasion robberies in the greater Ann Arbor area over the Thanksgiving weekend in 2014, as well as additional armed robberies in the greater Dallas area in early December 2014.

Federal investigators say the robbers typically used female decoys to knock on the victims' doors and gain entry, or they merely forced entry themselves. Once inside, members of the robbery crew -- disguised with bandanas and masks -- allegedly brandished firearms to gain control of their victims, including children, and then forced them at gunpoint into a single room of the home. Some members of the crew were allegedly assigned to bind the victims with duct tape, or otherwise maintain control over them.

At the same time, other members of the crew allegedly ransacked the homes in search of cash, jewelry and electronics. Members of the crew are accused of compiling a list of targets by conducting research on the Internet, among other methods, to identify families of Asian and Indian ancestry.

Chaka LeChar Castro, 40, Juan Olaya, 35, and Octavius Scott, 22, all of Houston, and Jakeyra Augustus, 21, of La Marque, Texas, are each charged with engaging in a RICO conspiracy, four counts of assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering, and four counts of use and carrying of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Rodney Granger, 19, and Johnisha Williams, 19, both of Houston, are each charged with engaging in a RICO conspiracy. All of the defendants are currently in custody.

"The armed robberies allegedly committed by this organized criminal group were horrific home invasions that spread fear through Asian and Indian communities across multiple states," said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell in a news release. "This indictment is the first step in holding responsible those accused of carrying out armed robberies that were both life threatening and ethnically targeted."

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