Source: Office of United States Attorneys
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Mason Williams-Surzano, 20, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Karen S. Marston to nine years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for committing two carjackings in a matter of hours in December 2023.
In September, the defendant pleaded guilty to an information charging him with the carjackings, as well as one count of aiding and abetting the brandishing of a firearm during a crime of violence.
On December 13, 2023, at approximately 6:30 p.m., the defendant and three others approached Victim 1 in the area of 1700 Brill Street in Philadelphia. They confronted him at gunpoint and forced him to surrender the keys to his vehicle, a 2016 Volkswagen Passat. Williams-Surzano and the other assailants then fled in the victim’s vehicle, which was recovered by Philadelphia police a few hours later, less than half a mile away from the scene.
On December 14, 2023, at approximately 1:10 a.m., the defendant and the same three assailants approached Victim 2 in the area of 1600 Sparks Street in Philadelphia. They confronted him at gunpoint and forced him to surrender the keys to his vehicle, a 2017 Kia Forte. Williams-Surzano and the other carjackers then fled in the Kia.
“Imagine staring down the barrel of a gun as a criminal crew demands your car,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Anyone committing a carjacking — let alone two in just a few hours — is a clear danger to our community. We and our partners on the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force are working every day to make this city safer by identifying, prosecuting, and bringing to justice offenders like Williams-Surzano.”
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael R. Miller and Kwambina I. Coker.