A Philadelphia man has been indicted on charges related to an armed carjacking that took place in West Philadelphia earlier this year. Xavier Peterson, 19, was arrested and charged with one count of carjacking and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, according to an announcement from United States Attorney David Metcalf.
Authorities allege that on April 4, 2025, Peterson approached a couple as they were parking their Subaru Crosstrek in West Philadelphia. The indictment states he pointed a handgun at them, forced them out of the vehicle, and then drove away.
Court filings detail that about 40 minutes after the incident, one victim received an alert that her credit card—left inside the stolen vehicle—had been used in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. This prompted law enforcement in Delaware County to begin searching for the car.
Roughly an hour after the carjacking, a Haverford police officer spotted the stolen Subaru speeding on West Chester Pike toward Interstate 476. When police attempted to stop the vehicle, court documents allege Peterson fled from the driver’s seat while three passengers remained inside. Officers found him hiding near the highway within five minutes and recovered a loaded semiautomatic handgun nearby.
Peterson was ordered detained following a federal detention hearing. If convicted on all counts, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison and could receive up to life imprisonment.
The investigation involved multiple agencies: the Philadelphia Police Department, Haverford Township Police Department, Radnor Township Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Michael Miller is prosecuting the case.
“The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty in court,” according to prosecutors.
