Estifanos Kumssa, Two Counts of Carjacking, Tennessee 2023

A 26-year-old Nashville felon has been sentenced to 260 months in federal prison for multiple carjacking and weapons offenses committed while he was on pre-trial release.

Nashville resident Estifanos Kumssa was sentenced earlier this week to 260 months in federal prison after being convicted of two counts of carjacking and two counts of possessing and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.

Acting United States Attorney Robert E. McGuire said the defendant’s actions were ‘critically important’ and demonstrated the need for the federal government to step in and protect the community.

‘This conviction and the serious sentence he received should illustrate our commitment to prosecuting violent offenders to the fullest extent and holding them accountable so they can’t victimize anyone else in our community,’ McGuire said.

According to court documents, Kumssa was involved in two carjacking incidents on May 30, 2019. In the first incident, he approached an Uber driver with a pink and black handgun and demanded money. When the driver replied that he did not have any money, Kumssa shoved his gun through the cracked window, took the driver’s wallet, and demanded that the driver get out of his car. Kumssa then got into the driver’s seat, unlocked the passenger door, and fled the scene in the victim’s car.

Less than six hours after the first carjacking, Kumssa was involved in a second carjacking incident at a business on Murfreesboro Pike. In that incident, he approached two victims with a pistol drawn, demanded the keys, and ordered them to get out of the vehicle. Kumssa and his accomplice then got in the vehicle and fled the parking lot. A be-on-the-lookout alert was issued for the vehicle, and an MNPD patrol officer observed the vehicle in a parking lot in the vicinity of Bell Forge Road and Bell Road. The vehicle was stopped using spike strips, and Kumssa was caught after a short foot pursuit. A distinctive pink and black firearm was recovered in the path of his flight from the vehicle.

Kumssa had previously been convicted of three state felonies, including two counts of auto burglary and a carjacking that occurred in September 2017 and January 2018, respectively.

The jury in the federal case convicted Kumssa of two counts of carjacking and two counts of possessing and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.

Mandatory Facts:

Defendant: Estifanos Kumssa
Criminal Charges: Two counts of carjacking and two counts of possessing and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence
City and State: Nashville, Tennessee
Date: May 30, 2019
Sentence: 260 months in federal prison