WASHINGTON - Jahlani Brown, 21, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for sexually assaulting a rental office employee last year at an apartment building in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Brown pled guilty in October 2013, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to first-degree sexual abuse. He was sentenced by the Honorable John Ramsey Johnson. In addition to prison time, Brown will be subject to 10 years of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 17, 2013, at about 9 a.m., the victim reported to her office in the Shaw area of Northwest Washington and began preparing for her workday. Brown, who was captured on video surveillance, entered the office and locked the door. He sexually assaulted, threatened, and robbed the victim before leaving the office.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) released surveillance images to the media in hopes of generating information, and neighboring businesses and community members cooperated with law enforcement in getting the word out about the attack. Brown was arrested two days after the assault and has been in custody ever since.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Sexual Assault Unit. He also praised those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist D’Yvonne Key, Victim/Witness Advocate Lezlie Richardson and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mervin A. Bourne, Jr., who investigated and prosecuted the matter.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
