Carjacking teen facing six years in jail over death of Uber Eats driver

Amid increase in carjackings in Washington DC, teens appear in court for 66-year-old’s death last month

Video of the carjacking incident on 23 March (NBC Washington)

A 15-year-old girl accused of murdering an Uber Eats delivery driver in Washington DC during a fatal carjacking is facing six years in jail.

According to officials, the teenager pleaded guilty for one charge of felony murder on 5 May, when she was due to appear in court for the fatal carjacking of Mohammed Anwar, aged 66. The hearing did not occur.

Mr Anwar was working as an Uber Eats driver on 23 March when the teenager and a 13-year-old allegedly attempted to hijack his Honda vehicle from a street near to Nationals Park, according to The Washington Post.

Witnesses claimed that Mr Anwar was hanging from the vehicle it as it crashed – causing fatal injuries.

The teenagers, who authorities said were armed with a taser, were afterwards arrested and charged with carjacking and felony murder of the Pakistani immigrant, who family members paid tribute to.

The two teenagers, who were able to crawl out of the Honda, faced charges as juveniles, with the 13-year-old due to appear in court on 13 May after an initial hearing for this week was rescheduled.

According to The Post, the 13-year-old cannot face charges or sentencing as an adult, even for felony murder, and it is thought that she will be offered a plea deal by prosecutors,

On Tuesday, DC officials dropped all other charges against the 15-year-old – including armed carjacking, robbery and aggravated reckless driving.

She will appear in court for sentencing on 4 June and, as part of the deal, will serve up to six years in jail, until the age of 21, when she must be released as an adult.

Following the incident in March, Uber said it was “devastated by this tragic news and our hearts go out to Mohammad's family during this difficult time”.

"We’re grateful the suspects have been arrested and thank the Metropolitan Police Department for their diligence with this investigation,” it added.

As reported by The Post, as many as 43 carjacking incidents were reported in DC in the first wive weeks of the year, in comparison to eight the previous year – many of which were carried-out by teenagers.