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Officials have charged two D.C. teens as adults and sentenced each of them to eight years in prison for a series of armed robberies in which victims responded to posts on an online marketplace.
Judge Juliet McKenna sentenced 17-year-old David Crocker and 16-year-old Sadiq Blaine on Friday, U.S. Attorney for D.C. Channing D. Phillips announced in a release today. The incidents took place in February and March, and the teens pleaded guilty in July in D.C. Superior Court.
Crocker and Blaine lured all of the victims to locations in Southeast using ads on the site OfferUp, where people can post goods for sale. The first two victims arrived near the Capitol View Library after responding to an ad for three iPhones. When the victims arrived, the teens jumped into the back seat of their car.
Blaine then pulled out a fake firearm and pointed it at the victims. The teens demanded money from the victims, one of whom handed over about $120 and the other gave at least $500. But Crocker and Blaine wanted more money and held the driver at gunpoint while giving him directions to an ATM machine.
While en route, the driver saw a D.C. Police car coming towards them and stopped in the middle of the intersection at Central Avenue and 52nd Street SE to get the officers’ attention. The teens then fled from the car. Officers pursued them but didn’t catch up.
The next incident took place three days later and involved Crocker taking money and a cellphone from the victims. This time, Crocker had a knife.
The third incident happened less than a month later, in which the teens stole cash and the victim’s social security card. They also shattered his car window with a brick.
The final incident took place the next day. The teens stole one victim’s wallet, and cash from another victim. This time, Crocker had a fake firearm and Blaine had a knife.
The teens were charged as adults “given the serious nature of their crimes,” according to attorney Phillips. They were arrested in March after MPD searched a home on the 5100 block of Astor Place SE where many of the crimes took place. Police found a cellphone video of Crocker and Blaine on the date of one of the robberies—they were “flashing large amounts of cash.”
In April, MPD announced locations of three safe spaces where D.C. residents can buy and sell things from strangers. At the time, former D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said that detectives made arrests in 28 robberies linked to transactions negotiated on sites like Craigslist.
The “exchange zones” are located at the Third District station (1620 V Street, NW), the Sixth District station (5002 Hayes Street NE), and the Special Operations Division’s Harbor Patrol site (550 Water Street SW).
Once Crocker and Blaine finish their sentences, they will be placed on five years of supervised release.
