A Queens, New York man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for his involvement in a kidnapping case in Paterson, New Jersey, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Alina Habba. The individual, 39-year-old Reginald Law, pleaded guilty to charges of kidnapping and Hobbs Act robbery before U.S. District Judge Evelyn Padin in Newark federal court.
According to court documents and statements, the incident occurred on October 8, 2020, when Law and an accomplice, Maurice Cottman, entered a retail store in Paterson. They forcibly removed the victim working there and transported him in a U-Haul truck to New York. During the kidnapping, Law and Cottman contacted the victim's family, demanding ransom. The victim was also coerced into providing his debit card and pin number, allowing the kidnappers to withdraw money from his bank accounts.
In addition to the 15-year prison sentence, Judge Padin ordered Law to undergo five years of supervised release following his incarceration.
Maurice Cottman, Law's accomplice, also pleaded guilty to a kidnapping charge before Senior U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler. On March 29, 2022, Judge Chesler sentenced Cottman to 15 years in prison, also with five years of supervised release.
Special agents from the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Terence G. Reilly in Newark, were credited by U.S. Attorney Habba for their investigative work leading to the sentencing. The FBI New York Field Office and the Paterson Police Department provided assistance in the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shontae D. Gray of the Economic Crimes Unit represented the government.
The defense counsel for Reginald Law was Christopher L. Patella, Esq., from Bayonne, New Jersey.