Matthew M. Graves U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia
Darnell Peoples, a 22-year-old resident of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to 20 years in prison following his guilty plea to the armed oral sexual assault of a senior citizen. The incident occurred at the victim's home in Southeast Washington, D.C. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Peoples had been detained since his arrest on June 11, 2024. He pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree sexual abuse on November 15, 2024, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. His plea agreement included a 20-year prison sentence, which was accepted by Judge Anthony C. Epstein.
Upon release from prison, Peoples will be required to register as a sex offender and will remain under supervised release for life.
The court heard that on June 11, 2024, while the victim was working in her yard, Peoples approached her from behind with a knife and instructed her to get on her knees. When she indicated she could not comply due to physical limitations, he threw her to the ground and forcibly assaulted her.
U.S. Attorney Martin and Chief Smith commended the efforts of the Metropolitan Police Department investigators involved in this case. They also acknowledged support from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section Cybercrime Lab and praised Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristin Sourbeer for her role in investigating and prosecuting this case.
