U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Richard Carr, a 29-year-old resident of Orleans Parish, pled guilty on February 4, 2025, to charges related to a carjacking and gun violations that took place in New Orleans on January 12, 2023.
Carr admitted guilt to carjacking under Title 18, United States Code, Section 2119(1); brandishing a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence under Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(ii); and being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to court documents, New Orleans Police Department officers responded to an armed robbery/carjacking on Conti Street. The victim reported meeting Carr earlier that day and driving him around the city before Carr produced a firearm and demanded the victim’s cell phone and car keys for his silver Toyota CHR. The following day, police found the stolen vehicle without its license plate at a gas station on Franklin Ave with Carr asleep inside and a firearm on his lap. Officers secured the Glock Model 43 pistol and arrested Carr who was prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior felony convictions.
For the carjacking and felon in possession charges, Carr faces up to 15 years imprisonment, fines up to $250,000.00, and up to three years of supervised release. For brandishing a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years up to life imprisonment along with potential fines up to $250,000.00 and five years supervised release plus a $300 special assessment fee.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which aims at reducing violent crime by bringing together law enforcement agencies with community organizations focused on preventing violence through strategic enforcement priorities while fostering trust within communities.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives alongside the New Orleans Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Greg Kennedy from the Violent Crime Unit is prosecuting this case.