Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

NEW ORLEANS, LA – MERVIN BAILEY, age 20, of New Orleans, Louisiana, was sentenced today for carjacking and attempted carjacking in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2119 and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(ii) announced United States Attorney Duane A. Evans.

BAILEY was sentenced to a total term of imprisonment of 147 months. This consists of 63 months each, to be served concurrently, for a carjacking on June 3, 2021, which occurred outside of a residence in New Orleans and an attempted carjacking of a Lyft driver on October 4, 2021 in New Orleans. A consecutive 84-month sentence was ordered for brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Additionally, the defendant must serve a three-year term of supervised release and pay a $100.00 mandatory special assessment fee for each count.

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 New Orleans Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Strauss of the Violent Crimes Unit.