A federal jury in Philadelphia has slammed the brakes on what prosecutors describe as a violent carjacking crew that terrorized city streets and nearby suburbs, leaving two people dead in its wake. On Thursday, jurors convicted five men — Mikal McCracken, Amin Muse, Aleem Abdul-Hakim, Dean Fosque and Kavon Coleman — of federal charges tied to a sprawling carjacking conspiracy. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled, and each man now faces the possibility of life in prison.
Convictions delivered in federal court
The U.S. Attorney's Office said the five defendants were found guilty at trial of conspiring to commit at least 29 armed carjackings listed in a superseding indictment. Prosecutors said the broader conspiracy covered roughly 60 carjackings between October 2021 and October 2022.
Officials outlined individual verdicts, including McCracken's conviction on a carjacking charge that resulted in death along with 20 additional armed carjackings. According to prosecutors, each defendant now faces a maximum possible sentence of life in prison. The case reached trial after what authorities described as a lengthy, multiagency investigation by the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force.
How prosecutors say the ring operated
Prosecutors told jurors the group worked in rotating crews that hunted for newer, high-end cars across Southwest and Northeast Philadelphia and into nearby suburbs including Yeadon, Millbourne, Lower Southampton and King of Prussia, as reported by FOX 29. Some crews allegedly struck multiple times in a single night.
The government leaned on witness testimony, cellphone and GPS data, and ballistic evidence to connect the men to a series of robberies and shootings tied to the stolen vehicles. Interest in the high-profile case was strong enough that an overflow courtroom was used to stream the verdicts, local coverage noted.
Victims and an international trail
Court records and earlier reporting show the spree turned deadly in February 2022. Prosecutors allege that McCracken, Muse and Abdul-Hakim joined another co-defendant in killing 60-year-old George Briscella outside his mother's home on the 2100 block of Afton Street in Rhawnhurst. They also allege that a locksmith who may have been a witness was later killed on the 8100 block of Grovers Avenue in Eastwick.
The Philadelphia Inquirer has reported that investigators traced part of the operation to buyers who arranged to ship stolen vehicles overseas. Prosecutors said those details emerged from the indictment that was unsealed in February 2024 and from evidence aired at trial this week.
What law enforcement said
"These defendants ran one of the most extensive and terrible carjacking rings in American history," U.S. Attorney David Metcalf said in the office's announcement, crediting sustained work by multiple agencies for the convictions. He framed the verdicts as a clear message to would-be copycats who might see carjacking as a quick score.
The FBI's special agent in charge in Philadelphia said the verdicts should signal that brazen, violent crimes that target local residents will be aggressively investigated and prosecuted. Officials praised the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, which includes the FBI, Philadelphia Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, for the work that brought the case into federal court.
What happens next
The five convicted men will be sentenced at later hearings and, according to officials, each faces a potential life term. Two other co-defendants named in the superseding indictment, Amadou Moussa and Davon Squire, remain charged and are scheduled to be tried separately, FOX 29 reported.
Legal note
Under federal law, carjacking that results in death carries the harshest available penalty for that offense. When a death results, a defendant can be imprisoned for any number of years up to life and, in certain circumstances, can face the death penalty. The statute lays out separate penalty tiers for ordinary carjacking, carjacking that causes serious bodily injury, and carjacking that results in death. Those categories are spelled out in Cornell Law School's publication of 18 U.S.C. § 2119.
