Two District Men Plead Guilty to Charges in Armed Home Invasion on Capitol Hill

            WASHINGTON – Barrett Harrington, 31, and Germar Fox, 35, both of Washington D.C., have pled guilty to charges stemming from an armed home invasion that took place in July 2016 near Capitol Hill, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced today.

            Harrington and Fox pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to the charge of first-degree burglary while armed. Harrington entered his guilty plea on June 1, 2018, and Fox pled guilty today. The pleas, which are contingent upon the Court’s approval, call for each defendant to be sentenced to 102 months of incarceration. The Honorable Kimberly S. Knowles scheduled sentencing for Aug. 10, 2018. Both men were to stand trial today before deciding to plead guilty to the lead charge in the indictment.

            According to the government’s evidence, the burglary took place at about 5:30 p.m. on July 15, 2016, with both Harrington and Fox conspiring to take items of personal property from the victim while he was present in his apartment in the 1000 block of New Jersey Avenue SE. Fox was armed with a firearm during the crime. According to the evidence, Harrington, Fox, and a third man conspired to commit the crime. The third man previously befriended the victim, but that was actually a ruse. On the day of the home invasion, the third man and the victim were together. The third man stepped out and informed Harrington and Fox that he was alone with the victim in the apartment. Harrington and Fox then barged into the apartment, bound the victim with duct tape, placed a pillow case over his head, assaulted him with the gun, and robbed him of his safe with thousands of dollars in cash and other items.  

            As they made their escape, a passerby noted the license plate of the getaway car, and provided it to police. Further investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including fingerprint and DNA evidence, led to the arrests of the defendants. Harrington was arrested on June 24, 2017 and Fox was arrested on July 11, 2017. Both have been in custody ever since. The case against the third man remains pending.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. She also expressed appreciation for the assistance of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. She acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Veronica Sanchez, Denise Cheung, and Stephen Rickard; Paralegal Specialists Tiffany Fogle and Donice Adams; Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan; Litigation Technology Specialist Anisha Bhatia, and Criminal Investigator John Marsh.

            Finally, she commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kamil Shields, Alyse Constantinide and Louis Manzo, who investigated, indicted and prosecuted the matter.