NASHVILLE — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)), published as received.

NASHVILLE – Estifanos Kumssa, 26, of Nashville, Tennessee, was sentenced earlier this week to 260 months in federal prison after having previously convicted after a jury trial on two counts of carjacking and two counts of possessing and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, announced Robert E. McGuire, Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.

“This defendant was already released on bond in state court for a violent crime when he committed more violence, so it was critically important for us to step up to protect our community,” said Acting United States Attorney Robert E. McGuire. “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.”

"The FBI works closely with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to make sure those bringing violence to our streets are held accountable," said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. "We will continue working together to make our communities a safe place to live, work, and raise a family."

“Criminal defendants on pre-trial release who continue to victimize our community must be held accountable,” said Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake. “Our police department and the United States Attorney’s Office are watching closely for those situations, especially violent scenarios, and are working together to take appropriate action whenever possible.”

On May 30, 2019, at approximately 3:25 p.m., an Uber driver (“Victim A”) was parked and smoking a cigarette in a parking lot in Antioch, Tennessee, as he waited for his next call to pick-up a passenger. Shortly after he parked, Kumssa and an accomplice approached Victim A’s car, Kumssa banged on the window with a pink and black handgun and demanded money. When Victim A replied that he did not have any money, Kumssa shoved his gun through the cracked window, took Victim A’s wallet, and demanded that Victim A get out of his car. Kumssa then got into the driver’s seat, unlocked the passenger door so his accomplice could get in, and fled the scene in Victim A’s car. Victim A later positively identified Kumssa as the person who shoved the gun through his window during the carjacking. Surveillance video from businesses in the area of the carjacking also showed Kumssa wearing a distinctive sweatshirt which he was still wearing when he was arrested.

Less than six hours after the first carjacking, 911 operators were alerted to another carjacking at 2510 Murfreesboro Pike. There were two victims of this second carjacking, the owner of the vehicle (“Victim B”), who was cleaning a business at the time of the carjacking, and a second victim (“Victim C”) who sitting in the vehicle waiting for Victim B when Kumssa and his unidentified accomplice approached it. Victim C, who later positively identified the defendant, stated that Kumssa approached him with a pistol drawn, demanded the keys, and ordered Victim C 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 (“BOLO”) 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, just 2.4 miles from the site of carjacking. MNPD officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop of the stolen vehicle, but it fled north along Bell Road where it was stopped by using spike strips. MNPD officers caught Kumssa after a short foot pursuit and recovered a distinctive pink and black firearm in the path of his flight from the vehicle.

Before these carjackings, Kumssa had been convicted of three state felonies: (1) two counts of auto burglary from events that took place in September 2017; and (2) a carjacking that occurred in January 2018. The jury in the federal case convicted Kumssa of two counts of carjacking and two counts of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, the jury acquitted Kumssa of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

At the time he committed these carjackings, Kumssa was on pre-trial release on an Especially Aggravated Robbery indictment in Davidson County Circuit Court.

Following his term of imprisonment, Kumssa will be on supervised release for three years.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Nashville Field Office, and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Petro and Joshua Kurtzman prosecuted the case.

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