David Zanders, age 23, from the District of Columbia, received a 180-month prison sentence in federal court for crimes involving kidnapping and carjacking committed in May last year. The sentencing, announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr., also includes five years of supervised release after Zanders' time behind bars.
In a night that spiraled from deceptive transport to armed threats, Zanders, along with an accomplice, feigned as Uber operators to lure two male victims into their vehicle. Subsequently, using a gun to intimidate, he robbed the victims, according to court documents released by the U.S. Attorney's Office. In attempts to obtain more money, Zanders drove the victims to several ATMs, during which one of the victims managed to escape.
The saga didn't end there. Later the same day, Zanders, backed by associates, looked to hijack a green Dodge Charger under the guise of a car sale. This incident left the would-be buyers without their phones, money, and car. Zanders' plan concluded with him and his crew escaping in separate vehicles, only to face arrest on November 18, 2022, after an investigation by the MPD’s Carjacking Task Force and the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force.
The U.S. Attorney's Office noted that Zanders has been in detention since his arrest, with the case being a product of collaborative law enforcement efforts, including valuable assistance from Prince George's County Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shehzad Akhtar and Cameron Tepfer, along with former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Renaud, led the prosecution of this case.
