Three Defendants Sentenced to Combined 24 Years in Federal Prison for Armed Carjacking

CLEVELAND – The last of three defendants involved in a 2021 carjacking and kidnapping was sentenced this week. Anton Woodley, 22, Cashaun Woodley, 24, and Lavontay Johnson, 23, all of Cleveland, each previously pleaded guilty to carjacking after they used firearms to drive an individual around the city so they could steal his money and take his motor vehicle by force.

Court documents show that on Dec. 12, 2021, a male victim visiting downtown Cleveland met two women who suggested they visit a nearby apartment building. After arriving, one of the women contacted the defendants to tell them about the man she had just met. She then worked out a plan to help them rob him. The Woodley brothers and Johnson traveled to the apartment and waited outside for the male victim to exit the building. When the victim appeared and walked out to his vehicle, the Woodley brothers and Johnson ambushed him at gunpoint. They pressed a pistol up against the back of his head and ordered him into the backseat of his car. The defendants abducted the victim and entered the car, with the Woodley brothers flanking the victim with guns while Johnson drove away.

With a gun pressed into his side, the defendants demanded money from the victim. They forced him to transfer several hundred dollars out of his accounts and disclose his financial information on his cellphone. After some time driving around the east side of Cleveland, they released the victim on East 80^th Street and then sped away in his vehicle.

The victim’s car was recovered later that month when Garfield Heights police chased Johnson. As he fled the stolen vehicle on foot, officers found a Glock 23, 40 caliber pistol in Johnson’s flight path.

U.S. District Court Judge Pamela A. Barker imposed the following sentences:

• Anton Woodley was sentenced July 15, 2025, to 78 months (6.5 years) in prison, followed by three years of supervised release after imprisonment.
• Lavontay Johnson was sentenced March 13, 2025, to 120 months (10 years) in prison, followed by three years of supervised release after imprisonment.
• Cashaun Woodley was sentenced Dec. 19, 2024, to 100 months (8.3 years) in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. 

Each defendant was ordered to pay $1,240 in restitution. This investigation was conducted by the FBI Cleveland Division, Cleveland Division of Police, and the Garfield Heights Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorney Adam J. Joines prosecuted the case for the Northern District of Ohio.