A D.C. man has been sentenced to seven years in prison for the gunpoint carjacking of a nun.
Brandon Brown, 20, pleaded guilty in May to carrying a pistol without a license and carjacking. Brown agreed to a sentence of seven to 10 years in the guilty plea. His sentence was announced Friday.
The nun was dressed in her full habit when she was carjacked near Catholic University in Northeast D.C. in April, took a moment to bless the Brown, even as he held a gun to her head.
The nun, who is part of the Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara community, was walking on Quincy Street about 7 p.m. April 9 to a minivan owned by the convent. She told police she locked eyes with a man wearing a bandana over his face.
After grabbing a CD from the minivan’s stereo, Brown approached her.
According to court documents, Brown motioned to the waistband of his pants and said, "Give me the key right now."
The nun was silent and didn't hand over the keys, court documents say.
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Brown then held a gun to her left temple, again demanding the keys, she told police. The nun held the keys out to her attacker, she told police.
As he grabbed the keys, she told her attacker, "May God bless you."
The nun ran inside, and the other nuns contacted police.
With the assistance of a license plate reader, police began to pursue the van. After a crash, Brown was arrested. Police said they found the gun and a red bandana tucked into his pockets.
Brandon Brown, 20, of Northeast D.C., was arrested on charges of armed carjacking with a gun and carrying a pistol without a license, police said.
According to court documents, Brown confessed to the carjacking. He told police he was in the neighborhood to meet up with friends but got lost. Court documents say he told police he didn’t have money to take the Metro home and targeted the nun because she was in a secluded place.
Brown told police he noticed the nun's habit but didn’t think she was a nun. Court documents say Brown said he thought the nun was just very religious.
But as he fled, he heard her blessing.
Brown said he got the gun from a friend for protection four days before the carjacking, court documents show. He told police he didn’t think he would do anything close to what he did.
