A federal indictment unsealed on March 31 charges Dequan Simpson, 18, of the District of Columbia, with multiple crimes related to two alleged armed carjackings and a shooting that occurred last month in Northeast Washington, according to an April 2 announcement by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
The case is significant due to the violent nature of the incidents and their impact on community safety. The indictment includes counts of carjacking, interfering with interstate commerce by robbery under the Hobbs Act, using a firearm during a crime of violence, assault with a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, interstate transportation and possession of stolen vehicles, as well as fleeing law enforcement.
Jayvaun Brown, 20, also from D.C., is named in three counts involving interstate transportation and possession of a stolen vehicle and fleeing police. Brown was scheduled for his first court appearance on April 2. Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya ordered Simpson held without bond on April 1.
Court documents allege that on March 4 Simpson lured a pizza delivery driver to Webster Street NE under false pretenses before robbing him at gunpoint and stealing his vehicle. Two days later at the same location, authorities say Simpson used similar tactics to lure a freelance barber before robbing him and shooting him multiple times while taking his car; seven shell casings were found at the scene.
On March 9 police pursued one of the stolen vehicles through Northeast Washington; during the chase an occupant allegedly discarded a rifle from the vehicle before it crashed into a U.S. Park Police cruiser near M Street NW. Officers apprehended Simpson shortly after while Brown was located nearby in a parking garage.
The FBI Washington Field Office is investigating alongside U.S. Park Police and Metropolitan Police Department; Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Levy is prosecuting the case. Authorities remind that charges are allegations only: “every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
