Five Philadelphia Men Convicted at Trial of Conspiring to Commit at Least 29 Carjackings, Including the Murder of a Carjacking Victim, the Murder of a Potential Witness, and Related Offenses

PHILADELPHIA — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)), published as received.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that five Philadelphia men were convicted today at trial of conspiring to commit armed carjackings in and around Philadelphia and sell the stolen cars to buyers, who would then ship the vehicles to Africa for resale.

The defendants[1] were charged by superseding indictment in July 2024.

Mikal McCracken, aka “Kal,” 24, was convicted this afternoon of counts related to carjacking resulting in death, where he and three others carjacked and killed a former marine in February of 2022. He was also convicted of counts related to his participation in a conspiracy, with two others, to murder a potential witness in February of 2022. McCracken was also convicted for offenses related to an additional 20 armed attempted or completed carjackings. Those 20 armed carjackings included five where victims were shot or shot at. One of the victims was carjacked and shot on two separate occasions a month apart.

Amin Muse, aka “Miyn” and “Miyns,” 24, was convicted of counts related to carjacking resulting in death, where he and three others carjacked and killed the former marine. He was also convicted of counts related to his participation in the conspiracy, with two others, to murder the potential witness. Muse was also convicted for offenses related to an additional eight armed attempted or completed carjackings. Those 20 armed carjackings included one where the victim was shot at.

Aleem Abdul-Hakim, aka “Fatleem,” 23, was convicted of counts related to carjacking resulting in death, where he and three others carjacked and killed the former marine. Abdul-Hakim was also convicted of offenses related to an additional five armed attempted or completed carjackings.

Dean Fosque, aka “30,” 28, was convicted of offenses related to nine armed carjackings, which included three shootings, where one of those three victims was hit.

Kavon Coleman, aka “Ski,” 23, was convicted of offenses related to four armed attempted or completed carjackings, which included one shooting where the victim of the attempted carjacking was shot — and that victim had been a previous victim of this conspiracy.

As detailed in court filings and proven at trial, between October 2021 and October 2022, groups of rotating carjackers, including McCracken, Muse, Abdul-Hakim, Fosque, Coleman, and others, committed dozens of gunpoint carjackings, often carrying out multiple carjackings in one night. Many of these crimes occurred in Southwest and Northeast Philadelphia, and there were also carjackings in the surrounding suburbs, including Yeadon, Millbourne, Lower Southampton, and King of Prussia.

The carjackers used firearms and often assaulted their victims, sometimes by shooting them. In addition to cars, they also took personal identification, credit cards, and money from their victims. In several cases, conspirators then used the stolen identification materials to commit fraud crimes.

In all, the conspiracy involved approximately 60 carjackings, 29 of which were charged in the superseding indictment, including the carjacking which resulted in the murder of the victim, and the second murder of the potential witness. The charges included numerous shootings, including four shootings that left the victims (one of whom had been carjacked and shot on two different occasions) seriously injured.

The first murder occurred on February 6, 2022, when McCracken, Muse, and Abdul-Hakim, along with Jonathan Akubu, charged elsewhere, carjacked Victim 1, and shot and killed him in the process.

In their haste to flee the scene in Victim 1’s car, which was already running, the carjackers failed to take Victim 1’s key fob, which they would need to continue operating the stolen car after it was eventually shut off. Accordingly, they enlisted the help of a locksmith (Victim 2) to make them a new key for the car.

Shortly after the key was made, the police located and recovered Victim 1’s vehicle. Members of the conspiracy—McCracken, Muse, and Akubu, charged elsewhere, feared that law enforcement would identify the locksmith through forensics, because he touched the car while making the replacement key. The three believed that the locksmith would then cooperate with law enforcement investigating the killing, so they murdered Victim 2 on February 12, 2022, to prevent him from betraying them.

The investigation revealed that the carjackers, who usually operated in smaller groups of two to four, had been responsible for numerous carjackings dating as far back as October of 2021. Several carjacked cars were discovered in shipping containers bound for countries abroad.

“These defendants ran one of the most extensive and terrible carjacking rings in American history that terrorized and, in some cases killed, its victims. When viewed by the sheer scale and volume of violent robberies, this prosecution represents perhaps the most successful carjacking prosecution in the history of the Department of Justice,” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “That campaign of dread is done. The streets we walk and drive on are now safer thanks to the fantastic work of the FBI and all of our law enforcement partners on the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force.”

“These convictions should send a clear message: those who commit brazen, violent crimes targeting our community will be identified, pursued, and held accountable,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “At the center of this case, and every crime, are the victims. These convictions are a testament to our relentless pursuit of justice — for the victims who lost their lives, for the loved ones they left behind, and for the survivors among us, each permanently altered by these senseless acts of violence. This investigation was driven by the expertise, intelligence, and resources of the FBI's Violent Crime Task Force. Partnership remains a force multiplier in our work and our success — no single agency alone can take on such complex violent crimes. We continue to see meaningful progress across our city in reducing violent crime, and while our work is not done, today reflects our shared commitment to a safer city for everyone who calls Philadelphia home.”

“This case represented some of the very worst of what we saw during the rise of violent carjackings: calculated, coordinated, and completely indifferent to human life,” said Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin J. Bethel. “These individuals didn’t just steal cars — they terrorized neighborhoods, took innocent lives, and attempted to silence witnesses to cover their crimes. Thanks to the relentless work of the Philadelphia Police Department and our federal partners, this violent crew has been dismantled and held accountable. Let this be clear: if you bring this level of violence to our city, we will bring the full weight of law enforcement down on you. At the same time, we are seeing real progress: violent crime, including carjackings, continues to trend down because of the dedication of our officers and the strength of these partnerships. This is what the work looks like, and we are not slowing down.”

“Our Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force has been a game changer, as this case again demonstrates,” said Eric DeGree, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “Through the teamwork of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crime Unit, the FBI, the Philadelphia Police Department, and our ATF Special Agents, we have brought these dangerous criminals to justice. As summer approaches, these convictions should be a deterrent to those who think they can terrorize this city.”

The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and face maximum possible terms of life in prison.

This case was investigated by the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, comprising the FBI, Philadelphia Police Department, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with significant assistance from the Philadelphia offices of Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations, which helped investigate and uncover carjacked cars meant to be exported overseas. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph LaBar and Katherine Shulman.