A Baltimore man has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for his involvement in an armed carjacking and kidnapping case. U.S. District Judge Brendan A. Hurson delivered the sentence to Donte Davon Stanley, 35, who will also serve five years of supervised release following his imprisonment.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentencing along with officials from the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office, Baltimore Police Department, Baltimore County Police Department, Harford County Sheriff’s Office, and Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office.
In June 2024, after a three-week trial, a federal jury convicted Stanley and co-conspirator Dennis Allen Hairston of Catonsville on charges related to carjackings. The jury found Stanley guilty of kidnapping and robbery conspiracies; kidnapping; and carjacking.
Evidence presented during the trial showed that Stanley, Hairston, and others organized the kidnapping of an employee with the intent to rob check-cashing businesses where she worked. They also planned and executed the carjacking of her vehicle.
The events occurred between May 5-6, 2021. The group followed the victim from her workplace at a check-cashing business. Disguised as law enforcement officers using police vests, badges, and a police-style light bar on their vehicle, they pulled over the victim. Armed with firearms, Stanley and Hairston removed her from her vehicle by force. They then restrained her with handcuffs behind her back, zip-tied her feet, blindfolded her with a mask and duct tape around her face, and placed her in another vehicle.
While driving away from the scene, Hairston assaulted the victim physically—including sexual assault—and used a blowtorch to burn her in an attempt to extract information about accessing cash at her workplace.
During sentencing, Judge Hurson described their actions as “grotesque, depraved, reprehensible conduct.” In December 2025, Hairston was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison for this incident as well as another abduction that took place on May 15-16, 2021.
This prosecution falls under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which coordinates law enforcement efforts across agencies to reduce violent crime and gun violence within communities. In May 2021, a new strategy was launched focusing on community trust-building initiatives and strategic enforcement priorities (https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile).
U.S. Attorney Hayes praised local and federal investigators for their work on this case and acknowledged Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul E. Budlow and Spencer L. Todd for leading the prosecution.
Additional details about resources provided by the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office can be found at https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
