Federal prosecutors say a violent robbery crew turned a quiet Havertown night into a nightmare, and now one of the key players is heading to prison for a long time. Tyrek Byrd, 37, has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for his role in a home invasion and robbery scheme that targeted local business owners and their families. U.S. District Judge Cynthia M. Rufe handed down the sentence after a federal jury convicted Byrd in a case tied to a Havertown nail salon and a string of Philadelphia-area robberies.
Havertown home invasion detailed at sentencing
At sentencing, prosecutors walked the court through what happened to the owner of Fiji Nails & Spa. They said Byrd and two accomplices ambushed the owner as he returned to the business, forced him inside, tied his wrists with zip ties, gagged him with duct tape, and beat him while demanding cash.
The ordeal did not stop there. According to prosecutors, the men then forced the victim to take them to his home, where they confronted his wife, children, and nanny, tied them up, and tore through the house looking for valuables. During the chaos, the crew allegedly threatened to drown the family’s 3-year-old by turning on a bathtub faucet before fleeing with cash and jewelry. The entire episode lasted roughly 40 minutes, as outlined by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Part of a broader pattern, local reports say
Prosecutors and police have tied the same group to a November 20, 2019 robbery at a Philadelphia laundromat that netted between $34,000 and $36,000 in cash, along with other attempted robberies across the region. Court records and local reporting say the crew had a signature approach that involved zip ties and duct tape in multiple incidents.
Investigators later recovered a backpack near a Downingtown residence that contained zip ties, duct tape, and a loaded gun after a foot chase, according to details reported by Daily Local.
Investigators and prosecutors
Federal prosecutors say the crew did not pick their victims at random. They allegedly researched targets in advance, planted a GPS tracker on at least one victim’s vehicle, and coordinated violent robberies across county lines.
The investigation brought together the ATF, the Haverford Police Department, and the Uwchlan Township Police Department, with help from the FBI and Montgomery County detectives. The federal case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Carissimi, Brian Doherty, and J. Jeanette Kang, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Co-defendants already serving long terms
Byrd is the last defendant in the federal case to be sentenced. Co-defendant Shaquan Brown has already been ordered to serve roughly 2299 years in federal prison, and Willie Singletary received a 17-year federal term, while Sahir McCorkle was sentenced to 15 years, local reporting says.
Byrd was convicted at trial in September 2025 and was represented at sentencing by attorney Susan M. Lin, according to that reporting. Daily Local also notes that one suspect was arrested after being found near a Downingtown residence, where police recovered evidence they say linked the crew to multiple robberies.
Victims in the case have not filed public statements in the federal docket, and prosecutors have framed the prosecution as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, the Justice Department initiative that targets violent groups. The sentences cap a multi-year federal probe into a run of bold, targeted robberies that left business owners across Delaware and Philadelphia counties shaken and on high alert.
