District Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison for Aggravated Assault of a Senior Citizen

            WASHINGTON – Alexander Adams, 35, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to two counts of aggravated assault of a senior citizen, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves announced.

            Adams was sentenced to 96 months of incarceration followed by three years of supervised release by the Honorable Lynn Leibovitz of the Superior Court for the District of Columbia. Adams pled guilty on December 4, 2023. He has been in custody since February 24, 2022.

            According to the government’s evidence, around 11:10 p.m. on February 23, 2022, two senior citizens, then 78-year-old victim #1 and then 79-year-old victim #2, were randomly approached by Adams outside of the Giant located in the 3700 block of Newark Street in Northwest D.C., who asked them for five dollars. When victim #1 gave the defendant one dollar, the defendant declared, “That is not enough!” and began attacking victim #1 and victim #2. Adams first struck victim #1 with his fist, causing victim #1 to fall and then began beating victim #2 with victim #1’s wooden cane about her head and body. His attack caused her to fall backward and hit her head on the concrete. District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services personnel, who were nearby saw the attack and were able to act immediately and transport victim #2 to the hospital. As a result of the attack, victim #2 suffered numerous injuries including a concussion, a brain bleed, swelling on the brain, altered mental state and cognitive deficits. Victim #2 suffers from severe cognitive decline to this day and will likely never recover.

            In announcing the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department, which investigated the case. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Noah Simmons, Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark and Paralegal Specialists Cynthia Muhammad, ReShawn Johnson, Tiffany Jones, and Richard Cheatham.

            Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia who investigated and prosecuted the case.