US Lawmaker Becomes Victim of Carjacking

(RepublicanPress.org) – In July, the Council on Criminal Justice released some data on criminal trends across the United States. It found that vehicle thefts during the first half of the year increased by 33.5% compared to the same timeframe in 2022. Looking at the chart showing the changes across several offenses, car theft far surpassed any others. Unfortunately, a congressman recently became the victim of such a crime while in Washington, DC.

On October 2, Representative Henry Cuellar’s (D-TX) office reported that the congressman was parking his car in Washington DC when three armed men approached him and stole his vehicle. The congressman was not physically harmed and was “working with local law enforcement” to catch his assailants, as of October 2. His office thanked the police for the quick action after the incident and for finding and returning the lawmaker’s vehicle.

"Three guys came out of nowhere and they pointed guns at me."

Rep. Henry Cuellar offered his firsthand account after he was carjacked at gunpoint Monday night. https://t.co/7EjdzBn44h

— ABC News (@ABC) October 3, 2023

Fox News published details about the incident obtained from a statement from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). The notice advised that the United States Capitol Police took over theinvestigation. The MPD also advised that the incident happened at the corner of New Jersey and K Street in Southeast DC at around 9:30 at night. That location is about a mile from the Capitol building. Apparently, House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-CA) was also at the scene talking to police, although it’s unclear if he was present at the time of the incident or if he was a witness in any way.

MPD data about carjackings in DC appeared to track with the national data from the Council on Criminal Justice. Looking at the charted information, carjackings spiked significantly compared to previous years. Year to date at the time of writing, the department reported 569 carjackings involving firearms and 188 without in the district.

Fox News reported that just a couple of weeks ago, law enforcement held an open forum for congressional members and others working on Capitol Hill to discuss safety in the area.