DETROIT – Three Detroit men have been sentenced to prison after carrying out a scheme to attack and carjack a Lyft driver at gunpoint, officials said.
Lyft driver attacked
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The 66-year-old Lyft driver said he received a ride request around 4 a.m. Friday from a customer named “Ghetto Boy” to pick up three men in the area of Eight Mile Road and I-75 in Detroit.
He drove his black 2007 Cadillac Escalade to the location and picked up Marquel Devon Bazemore, Joseph Dejuan Shade-Hubbard and Jesse Dudley Evans, according to authorities.
The driver took the three men to the area of Mark Twain and Lyndon streets on Detroit's west side, police said.
Bazemore got out of the back seat, opened the driver's door and started punching the driver, officials said.
The driver said he tried to protect himself until Evans, who had been in the front seat of the car, pulled out a Glock 42 handgun and pointed it at him while Bazemore said, "Give me everything," according to authorities.
When the driver saw Evans pointing a gun at him, he stopped resisting and said, "Don't shoot. I've got no problem," police said.
The driver told the men he was stuck in his seat belt, so Evans removed it, according to the criminal complaint.
Bazemore and Evans started going through the driver's pockets, taking his wallet, credit cards and about $70 in cash, police said. They told the driver to run away, police said.
Shane-Hubbard got into the driver's seat of the Escalade, which had the driver's three cellphones and a tablet computer, according to officials.
Bazemore and Evans also got into the car, and Shane-Hubbard drove away, police said.
The driver described the front passenger as a 17- to 22-year-old man with a medium complexion, a thin build and a mole or tattoo under his left eye. He said one of the other passengers was about 6 feet tall and had a medium to dark complexion and a thin build. He couldn't describe the third man.
Men taken into custody
Shortly after the carjacking, members of the Detroit Police Department Commercial Auto Theft Section found the Escalade parked on Dean Street on Detroit's east side, officials said.
Officers began watching the SUV. Around 11 a.m. Friday, Shade-Hubbard walked out of a home on Dean Street, used keys to get into the Escalade and drove it to a gas station in the 4100 block of Eight Mile Road, police said.
Shade-Hubbard, 19, was taken into custody around 11:30 a.m. Friday at the gas station, according to authorities. Arresting officers said they found the Escalade keys in his possession.
Shade-Hubbard provided officers with the address of the house he had left before getting into the Escalade, police said.
Officers went to the house with a search warrant and found a Glock handgun, two hooded sweatshirts and a hooded jacket, according to court records.
Bazemore, 18, and Evans, 19, were found around 2:30 p.m. Friday in the same room as the gun, and the room was identified as Evans' bedroom, police said. Officers said the house belongs to Evans' parents.
Police said Evans matched the driver's description of the front seat passenger. He was taken into custody.
Officers said they searched Bazemore and found the driver's stolen credit cards in his pants pocket. He was also taken into custody.
Police said Evans was placed in a live lineup with men of a similar physical appearance. They said the driver picked Evans as the man riding in the front seat of the Escalade before the carjacking.
Details of plan revealed during interviews
Police said Shade-Hubbard, Evans and Bazemore were all interviewed Saturday while in custody. All three admitted to being present during the carjacking, officials said.
Bazemore and Evans admitted to discussing stealing a car with Shade-Hubbard, according to authorities. They said they were aware Evans would bring a gun to the theft attempt.
Bazemore and Evans both independently told police that robbing a Lyft driver was Shade-Hubbard's idea.
Police said Bazemore initially lied about his role in the carjacking before admitting to opening the driver's door and trying to pull the driver out of the car.
Bazemore and Evans told police that Shade-Hubbard, knowing the plan was to steal a car, had requested a Lyft using the app on his phone, according to court records.
Evans admitted to having discussions with Shade-Hubbard over the phone regarding the plan to steal a car, police said.
Shade-Hubbard selected his sister's house as the Lyft destination, court records show.
Bazemore admitted to hitting the driver in the head multiple times to force him to submit, officials said.
Evans said he removed the gun from his pocket and pointed it at the driver once Bazemore had opened the door and started hitting the driver, according to authorities. Evans also admitted to unfastening the driver's seat belt to get him out of the car, police said.
Bazemore and Shade-Hubbard admitted to throwing the driver's phones out of the car window to avoid being tracked after the carjacking, court records show.
All three men admitted to returning the driver's car to Evans' house on Dean Street, police said.
Bazemore told police he had ordered food to be delivered to Evans' house using one of the driver's stolen credit cards, according to authorities.
Shade-Hubbard told police he drove the Escalade to a gas station to buy socks and other sundry items, officials said.
Evans admitted to trying to hide the handgun under his bed when police arrived at his parents' house with a search warrant, according to court records.
Charges
Authorities said there is probable cause that Bazemore, Shade-Hubbard and Evans took the Escalade from the owner by force and violence or by intimidation, and with intent to cause death or serious bodily harm.
Since the Cadillac was manufactured outside Michigan, the vehicle was "shipped or transported in interstate commerce," according to the criminal complaint.
A special agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said the pistol was shipped or transported by interstate commerce as well, court records show.
The criminal complaint charges Bazemore, Shade-Hubbard and Evans with carjacking and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
The trio pleaded guilty in May.
Sentencing
Federal officials said the three men were sentenced Tuesday (Sept. 28) in connection with these crimes.
Bazemore was sentenced to 96 months in federal prison.
Evans was sentenced to 114 months in federal rison.
Shade-Hubbard was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison.
