District Man Sentenced to 6 ½-Year Prison Term For Robbing and Beating a Man in Columbia Heights

Photo by PoPville flickr user ep_jhu

From MPD:

“Arnold Moody, 45, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to a prison term of 6 ½ years for robbing and beating a man earlier this year in front of an apartment complex in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

Moody pled guilty in June 2013, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of robbery. He was sentenced by the Honorable Michael Ryan. Upon completion of his prison term, Moody will be placed on three years of supervised release.

According to the government’s evidence, on May 3, 2013, at about 3 a.m., Moody stood by the entrance of an apartment complex in the 3400 block of Holmead Place NW, pretending that he either lived there or was there to visit someone. When he noticed the victim approach the complex and sit down, Moody looked around to see if anyone else was around. Then, without warning, he walked over to the victim and punched him in the face multiple times, causing a broken nose.

When the victim got up to defend himself, Moody slammed him to the ground. Then he went through the victim’s pockets and stole his wallet, which contained $40 and an identification card, and an iPhone. In addition to the broken nose, the victim suffered a dislocated shoulder in the attack. He continues to have pain, difficulty seeing, frequent headaches and nosebleeds.

Thanks to the work of detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Fourth District, Moody was apprehended. This was not the first time he attacked someone while stealing property. In 2008, Moody was sentenced to about 2 ½ years of incarceration for nearly the same conduct that he demonstrated in this case – striking a man in the head and taking his property.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Debra McPherson and Victim/Witness Advocate Elsa Resendiz. Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Natalia Medina, who prosecuted the case.”