Four men accused of robbing a bar in Hawthorne and then carjacking a taxi in Paterson New Jersey last Christmas could be headed to prison for a very long time if they are convicted of the crimes in federal court.

The suspects allegedly committed the crime on Christmas night, 2015. According to law enforcement, the four suspects, along with another man, started their crime spree by robbing the RD Benders bar in Hawthorne, NJ. The suspects reportedly walked into the bar just before 7:30 p.m., approached a bartender, and ordered him at gunpoint to give them money from the cash register.

The suspects allegedly got $200 in cash and a cell phone before fleeing the bar and leaving the area in a getaway car.

Roughly eight hours after the armed robbery at the Hawthorne bar, four of the suspects allegedly carjacked a taxi driver in Paterson, NJ. According to federal authorities, the suspects hailed a cab in Paterson and instructed the cabbie to drive them to Waldwick, New Jersey. Before the cab arrived at the destination, the suspects allegedly held up the cab driver at gunpoint and placed him in the back of a Dodge Caravan parked on a road in Ridgewood, New Jersey.

The robbery reportedly turned violent when the suspects slashed the victim’s throat and smashed him over the head with a beer bottle. The suspects then allegedly threw the victim on the side of the New York State Thruway in Woodbury, NJ.

The victim was later taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors treated him for his injuries and managed to save his life.

Police eventually captured the suspects. The four suspects accused of committing both the robbery and the carjacking attack include two men from New Jersey and two men from New York. All four suspects have been charged with several crimes, including armed robbery, use of a firearm during a crime of violence, carjacking, kidnapping, and conspiracy.

The suspects recently made appearances in U.S. District Court in Newark, New Jersey. Federal prosecutors alleged that the four suspects belong to the 18th Street gang, but it is unclear if their alleged gang involvement had anything to do with the violent crimes.

For more information about this case, check out the NJ.com article, “4 Reputed Gang Members Charged with Robbing Bar, Carjacking Taxi.”