State Watch

15-year-old charged in fatal Uber Eats carjacking pleads guilty to felony murder

A 15-year-old girl who is one of two teenagers charged in connection with the March death of an Uber Eats driver in Washington, D.C., has pleaded guilty to felony murder, a court spokesperson announced Tuesday. 

The girl, whose name has not been made public because she was charged as a minor, entered a plea deal last Wednesday in which the D.C. Attorney General’s Office agreed to drop all other charges against her, D.C. Superior Court spokesperson Claire Huber said in a statement to multiple news outlets

The 15-year-old had been charged with several other counts, including armed carjacking, robbery and aggravated reckless driving. 

The girl, along with a 13-year-old, were arrested over the death of Uber Eats driver Mohammad Anwar. Police said that the two girls used a Taser on the 66-year-old during a carjacking attempt near Nationals Park on March 23.

Police said Anwar was “hanging outside the car” during a struggle with the two girls and the vehicle then surged forward and crashed, fatally injuring Anwar. 

The Springfield, Va., resident was described by his family on a GoFundMe page launched after his death as a “hard-working Pakistani immigrant who came to the United States to create a better life for him and his family.”

The GoFundMe page for Anwar raised more than $1 million. 

Huber announced the 15-year-old’s guilty plea after a hearing initially scheduled for Tuesday did not occur. 

The spokesperson told news outlets that the 15-year-old’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 4, and a court appearance for the 13-year old has been rescheduled for May 19. 

A prosecutor during a March hearing said that the D.C. Attorney’s Office was preparing plea deals for both of the girls, though it was not immediately clear if the 13-year-old had already been offered one as of Tuesday. 

Uber said in a March statement that it was “devastated by this tragic news and our hearts go out to Mohammad’s family during this difficult time,” adding it was grateful the “suspects have been arrested and thank the Metropolitan Police Department for their diligence with this investigation.”