Metro Area Man Sentenced To 216 Months After Social Media Schemes Led to Armed Carjackings (DOJ)

DENVER - The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado announces that Alec Deschryver, 26, who has lived in various cities in the Denver metro area, was sentenced to 216 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to two counts of carjacking involving firearms.

According to the plea agreement, in October 2023, Deschryver used a social media marketplace to contact a woman who was selling a Mercedes sedan and arranged to meet her and see the car. Deschryver, who arrived at the woman's house with a second defendant, arranged a test drive of the vehicle with the woman's husband. Once in the vehicle, Deschryver drove the Mercedes onto rural roads, stopped the car and brandished a firearm while threatening the man who was with him for the test drive. Deschryver drove away in the car and later sold it to an unwitting individual.

In a second instance, in November 2023, Denver Police responded to a report of an armed carjacking that resulted in a shooting. In a similar scheme, Deschryver had responded to an advertisement for another Mercedes sedan listed on the same social media marketplace. Deschryver test drove the vehicle. Anticipating a sale, the seller went to remove a child safety seat from the backseat when Deschryver brandished a firearm. The victim backed away but was shot in the leg. Deschryver stole the vehicle. It was later recovered when the second defendant gave the car to a family member.

"This case demonstrates two important things. First, violent criminals in our communities will be prosecuted and held accountable for their behavior," said United States Attorney for the District of Colorado Peter McNeilly. "Second, this is an important reminder to the general public to use caution when engaging on social media marketplaces to sell or purchase goods."

"Engrained in the culture of ATF is working alongside our local law enforcement partners which contributed to the success in stopping these multi-jurisdictional violent crimes," said ATF Special Agent in Charge Chris Ashbridge. "Together, we operated as a powerful network that has delivered accountability and made our communities safer."

United States District Judge Gordon P. Gallagher presided over the sentencing.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Denver Police Department, the Larimer County Sheriff's Office, and the Northglenn Police Department.

The prosecution was handled by the Violent Crime and Immigration Enforcement Section of the United States Attorney's Office.

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.

Case Number: 1:24-cr-00012-GPG