A 35-year-old man was sentenced Friday to five years behind bars for a carjacking that led to a police pursuit in Fullerton.
Deshawn Ricks of Fresno pleaded guilty in December 2024 in L.A. federal court to one count of carjacking, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Court documents show that on the afternoon of June 14, 2023, Fullerton police responded to a carjacking in a downtown Fullerton parking structure. The victim told officers she was sitting in her parked 2022 Mazda CX-5 SUV with the vehicle turned off when Ricks approached her, opened her car’s door, and ordered her out of the SUV.
When the victim refused, Ricks placed one of his hands on her lower back and brandished a metal object — which the victim described as a “shank” — in his other hand, according to prosecutors. Ricks threatened to stab the victim, then pulled her out of the vehicle and drove off.
Police located the stolen vehicle, leading to a high-speed pursuit during which Ricks ran red lights, drove into oncoming traffic and hit a marked police vehicle, prosecutors said. He later lost control of the speeding Mazda, which was struck by a police vehicle, prompting him to unsuccessfully attempt to flee on foot.
Officers searched the Mazda and found a pointed, serrated metal stake-type object — nearly 12 inches long — near the front driver’s seat, prosecutors said.