Source: Office of United States Attorneys
WASHINGTON – Husan Thurston, 32, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to two years in prison and Alton Pernell, 28, also of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to two years in prison, with six months suspended, yesterday, for the burglary of a Gucci store in Northwest D.C. on September, 9, 2024, announced U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
On January 22, 2025, the Honorable Judge Andrea Hertzfeld sentenced Husan Thurston to 24 months’ incarceration followed by three years of supervised release, and Alton Pernell to 24 months’ incarceration, with six months suspended, followed by three years of supervised release suspended and one year of supervised probation. Pernell and Thurston pleaded guilty on November 19, 2024, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to second-degree burglary.
According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 11:00 p.m., on September 9, 2024, law enforcement officers observed a large group of individuals attempting to force entry into the Gucci store, located at the 1000 block of I Street, NW, while it was closed for business. Surveillance camera footage from inside of the Gucci store showed the defendants kicking the store’s doors and forcing their way inside. Both defendants were also captured on the store’s surveillance camera, running inside the store and grabbing handbags off of the display stands. One of the officers approached the front entrance of the store and then observed Thurston and Pernell inside. When officers entered the store and approached Pernell and Thurston, both men attempted to the flee but were prevented by the incoming officer. Both defendants fled to the rear of the store, where they were apprehended.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Martin and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hannah Skopicki and Elizabeth Ginsburg, who prosecuted the case.