Erick Alvarenga, a 19-year-old resident of Washington D.C., has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for his involvement in two carjackings that took place in late December 2024 and early January 2025. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Alvarenga entered guilty pleas on June 23, 2025, at the D.C. Superior Court to charges related to both incidents: one count of unarmed carjacking and one count of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for each offense. His co-defendant, Malik Kearney, aged 20, also pleaded guilty and is scheduled for sentencing on October 10, 2025.
Judge Andrea Hertzfeld imposed sentences of 60 months for each firearm possession charge and 84 months for each carjacking charge. The sentences from the December incident will run concurrently with each other but consecutively to those from the January incident.
According to evidence presented by prosecutors, the first carjacking occurred around 4:45 a.m. on December 28, 2024. Alvarenga and Kearney approached a man parked in a Jeep SUV on Eastern Avenue NE; one suspect was armed with a black handgun. They ordered the victim out of his vehicle before driving away with it.
The second incident happened days later at about 3:00 p.m. on January 3, 2025, at a gas station on Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue NE. Using the previously stolen Jeep to block another vehicle—a Dodge sedan—Alvarenga assisted while Kearney confronted the victim with a handgun and took control of the Dodge before both suspects fled.
Police arrested Alvarenga and Kearney later that day; they have remained in custody since their arrest. Officers recovered two firearms at the time—one with its serial number removed and another identified as a privately made "ghost gun."
Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department joined U.S. Attorney Pirro in announcing the sentence.
"In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Special Agent Nelson Rhone, Jr.."
"Finally, they commended the work of Assistant United States Attorneys Randle Wilson and Amanda Hoover, who prosecuted the case."
