MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two men have been sentenced to a total of 22 years in federal prison for armed carjackings that took place in 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice said Tuesday.
According to federal prosecutors, 20-year-old Tyshjohn Jones and 19-year-old Jayln Gray were sentenced to a total of 264 months in federal prison for carjacking, aiding and abetting, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
On April 29, 2020, the victim reported to Memphis Police that he noticed two men walking towards his home on Winway Drive. As he parked his 1999 Ford Explorer in his driveway, the two men approached him. One of them was holding a handgun.
The man with the handgun demanded money from the victim’s wallet and his car keys. The suspects had trouble unlocking the car, threatened to shoot the victim, and demanded he unlock his phone.
When the suspects drove way in the victim’s car, he called police.
The gunman was later identified as Jones and the other suspect was a juvenile.
On May 2, authorities said Jones, Gray and a juvenile suspect were driving a stolen Ford Explorer when it stopped working on Floriday Avenue. When a good Samaritan stopped to help them, officials say the man found Jones pointing a gun at his head as he opened to hood of his Cadillac to give them a boost.
He was struck several times with the pistol, and the three got away in the Cadillac.
A few days later, officers searched an address in the 1800 block of New Gate Drive in relation to an unrelated burglary at an auto dealership. Officers found several keys connected to auto thefts, as well as personal belongings of the good Samaritan with the Cadillac.
Gray and Jones allegedly admitted to their involvement in the carjackings.