Jury Finds District Man Guilty of Gun and Assault Charges

Monday, April 8, 2024

Defendant Shot at Vehicle With an Infant in the Backseat

            WASHINGTON – Diandre Caesar, 30, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty today by a Superior Court jury of two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). The verdict follows a five-day trial. 

            According to the government’s evidence, at around 1:00 p.m., on June 28, 2022, Caesar got into a verbal argument with the victims, who were trying to drive out of the McDonald’s parking lot on New York Avenue in Northeast Washington D.C.  As the victims turned onto New York Avenue NE to leave, with their infant child in a car seat in the backseat, Caesar followed them and, after trying to open the front passenger door, kicked the rear door multiple times.  The victims continued driving, at which point Caesar pulled out a firearm and fired at the car several times, striking it at least four times.  Police later arrested Caesar on a warrant on August 24, 2022.

            The Honorable Andrea Hertzfeld scheduled sentencing for June 10, 2024.

            In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Travis Wolf and Michael Toogun prosecuted the case at trial.