Source: United States Department of Justice News
WASHINGTON – Saquan Williams, 22, Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 35 years in prison for conspiracy, first-degree murder while armed, participation in a criminal street gang, and other charges for his role in a 2017 brazen shooting into a courtyard in the Potomac Gardens area of Southeast Washington. A jury found Williams guilty on July 18, 2022.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Pamela A. Smith, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
According to the government’s evidence, between May 2017 and October 2017, the defendant and others were members of a criminal street gang operating in the area of Wellington Park, within Washington, D.C. Williams, and others, were involved in a number of “beefs” with individuals from other areas of the city, many of which started as the result of petty feuds among local rival rap groups.
On Sept. 10, 2017, at approximately 6 p.m., as victim Carl Hardy was standing outside in the Potomac Gardens neighborhood, Williams and three others circled the neighborhood three times looking for individuals to target. On the fourth trip around the block, the vehicle stopped, and the driver paused to allow Williams and two other men to exit the vehicle armed with multiple weapons, to include an assault rifle. Williams and the two other shooters opened fire on the crowded courtyard, firing over 30 rounds and striking Mr. Hardy. The group then fled the scene.
Mr. Hardy, 24, was transported to the hospital where doctors operated multiple times in their efforts to save him. Ultimately, on Oct. 1, 2017, Mr. Hardy succumbed to his injuries. Shortly after Mr. Hardy’s death, an arrest warrant was obtained for Williams charging him with the murder. A second shooter, Quincy Garvin, also was arrested and convicted at trial. Garvin’s sentencing is scheduled for September 29, 2023.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Acting Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Chrisellen Kolb, Chief of the Appellate Division; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan Sellinger, Daniel Lenerz, and Sharon Donovan; Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Tasha Harris; Lead Paralegal Specialists Sharon Newman and Meridith McGarrity; Former Paralegal Specialist Stephanie Siegerist; Supervisory Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark; Witness Security Specialist Ashli Tolbert; Supervisory Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Litigation Technology Specialist Claudia Gutierrez; Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator Katina Adams-Washington; Victim/Witness Services Coordinators LaJune Thames and Maenylie Watson; and Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin.
Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Jackson and former Assistant U.S. Attorney John Timmer, who investigated and indicted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laura Bach and Lindsey Merikas who prosecuted the case.