Man Pleads Guilty to 2016 Armed Carjacking
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Hampton man pleaded guilty today on charges of brandishing a firearm during a 2016 carjacking.
According to court records, in December 2016, Daniel Lee Pittman, Jr., 20, approached the driver of a Porsche Panamera outside a Hampton barbershop and pointed a semi-automatic firearm at the driver’s head, ordering him to “run his pockets” and get out of the vehicle. Pittman fled in the Porsche and shortly thereafter he led police on a high-speed chase up to speeds of 100 mph. Police terminated the pursuit and later located the stolen car in a nearby Hampton neighborhood. Pittman was identified by the victim approximately two hours after the carjacking.
Pittman faces a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years and a maximum of life in prison when sentenced on October 30. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division, Terry L. Sult, Chief of Hampton Police Division, and Anton Bell, Hampton Commonwealth’s Attorney made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson accepted the plea. Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy E. Cross and Christopher O. Taylor are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:19-cr-36.
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