Philadelphia Man Sentenced to More Than Seven Years in Prison for His Role in Two Gunpoint Carjackings Targeting Elderly Victims

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Zamir Tucker, 21, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 85 months’ imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and restitution of $33,483 by United States District Court Judge Timothy J. Savage on Tuesday in connection with two gunpoint carjacking incidents in Upper Darby Township in September 2022.

Tucker was charged by superseding indictment in April 2023 and, in February of this year, pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiracy to commit carjacking, carjacking, attempted carjacking, and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

The defendant conspired with others, including co-defendant Alex Askew, to commit one carjacking and one attempted carjacking, both with firearms.

Late in the evening of September 7, 2022, Tucker, Askew, and others threatened a 66-year-old woman at gunpoint, in the course of stealing her Acura SUV. The victim had just parked in front of her home on Wilde Avenue in Upper Darby when a male with a firearm pointed a gun at her and demanded her keys. The offenders stole the victim’s purse and fled in her vehicle.

In the late afternoon of September 11, 2022, Tucker, Askew, and others threatened a 71-year-old woman at gunpoint as she parked in the alleyway behind her home on Brunswick Avenue in Upper Darby. Tucker and Askew demanded her keys, but when the victim screamed and ran towards her home, the offenders fled the scene without her vehicle.

Askew pleaded guilty in February of last year to one count of conspiracy to commit carjacking, three counts of carjacking, three counts of using a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, and one count of attempted carjacking, in connection with the September 7, 2022, and September 11, 2022, carjacking incidents, and two additional carjackings in Philadelphia. He was sentenced in September of 2024 to 21 years in prison.

“Nobody, let alone our mothers and grandmothers, should have to fear an armed carjacker’s ambush,” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “Taking violent criminals off the street will always remain a top priority of our office.”

“Carjacking elderly women at gunpoint is a cruel dangerous crime, and Zamir Tucker is now facing years in federal prison for it,” said Eric DeGree, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Philadelphia Field Division. “Working with the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force we continue to prosecute the carjackers who have plagued Philadelphia, making our city and communities safer with each case we solve. Carjacking is a serious crime, and we hope cases like this deter those who might try it.”

“I want to thank U.S. Attorney Metcalf and his team for making Upper Darby safer through their prosecution of this dangerous armed criminal,” said Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer. “The collaboration between the ATF, Upper Darby and Philadelphia Police Departments, and prosecutors from my office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, is critical to keeping Delco a safe place to live and work,” said Stollsteimer.

“I want to thank U.S. Attorney David Metcalf for his continued partnership in ensuring violent offenders are held fully accountable,” said Upper Darby Police Superintendent Timothy M. Bernhardt. “Strong collaborations like this are critical to protecting our communities. Tucker will now face justice for his cowardly acts against elderly residents of Upper Darby. Preying on the elderly is the lowest form of criminal behavior, and it will not be tolerated. These prosecutions send a clear message: if you come into our communities to commit violent crimes, you will be caught, and you will be prosecuted. All our residents, especially our most vulnerable, deserve to feel safe, and we will not allow anyone to take that from them. Let this serve as a warning: if you think you can commit these violent acts, not be caught and held accountable, think again,” Bernhardt said.

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 ATF, the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office Criminal Investigation Division, the Upper Darby Township Police Department, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorneys Brian Doherty and Sandra M. Urban.