A 25-year-old man pleaded guilty this week to a violent 2024 carjacking in Southeast Washington, DC, in which he allegedly forced his victim into the trunk of a moving vehicle, only for the victim to escape by triggering the car's emergency trunk release. Dajuane Goode also admitted to a separate fentanyl distribution charge stemming from a police chase months later that ended with his arrest in Northeast DC.
According to prosecutors, Goode arranged to meet the victim in Southeast DC on February 13, 2024. Goode entered the passenger seat of the victim's vehicle and pulled out a gun, at which point two other armed people approached the car, according to the account detailed by Daily Voice. The carjackers forced the victim from the driver's seat into his own trunk before Goode drove off in the stolen vehicle. While the car was still moving, the victim managed to open the emergency release lever from inside the trunk and jumped out.
An Emergency Lever Designed for Exactly This Moment
The victim's escape was made possible by an interior trunk release mechanism. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 401 addresses such mechanisms in passenger cars, according to Wikipedia. The standard is intended to help trapped occupants escape from inside a vehicle trunk.
Goode's second arrest came three months later. On May 28, 2024, a Prince George's County police officer spotted Goode driving a gray BMW X3 that had been linked to an armed robbery earlier that month, according to the Justice Department. When the officer attempted a stop, Goode fled, triggering a chase that crossed from Maryland into DC.
Foot Chase Through Alleys Ends With Officer Thrown to Ground
Goode abandoned the BMW in the 900 block of Franklin Street NE and took off on foot, running through alleys and over fences as officers pursued him, per the Justice Department's account. During the chase, he threw two items into a neighboring yard and was seen carrying a dark object under his arm. At one point, Goode threw a pursuing officer to the ground before landing in a gulch outside an apartment building and hiding behind a home on 10th Street NE, where police ultimately took him into custody.
Officers recovered the items Goode had thrown during the pursuit, and prosecutors say the recovered pills contained fentanyl. That discovery led to the second charge against him: possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture containing fentanyl.
Guilty Plea Covers Two Separate Federal Cases
Goode's guilty plea covered both the carjacking case and the fentanyl distribution case, as announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro on September 16, 2026, according to the Department of Justice. The case was investigated, according to the department. Goode is scheduled to be sentenced on February 26, 2027.
The case also highlights the distinction between armed and unarmed carjacking under D.C. law. Pirro, identified as the District's U.S. Attorney, has directed prosecutors to pursue the highest legally supported charges in violent crime cases, emphasizing aggressive federal prosecution of armed carjacking and narcotics distribution offenses, according to HillRag.
Part of a Broader Regional Crackdown
Federal officials have long noted that D.C. carjackings frequently involve multi-jurisdictional sprees, with suspects crossing borders between Washington, Maryland, and Virginia during or after committing violent thefts, the Justice Department said in 2024. Goode's case echoes a string of recent federal prosecutions in the region, including a guilty plea secured last month from 21-year-old D.C. resident Taurian Anderson for a similar armed carjacking spree across the three jurisdictions.
Despite these high-profile cases, the broader trend remains unclear from the sources cited here. It remains unclear whether the two other individuals who approached the victim's vehicle during the February 2024 carjacking have been identified or face charges.
