NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - MARIO COUSAN, age 25, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, was sentenced on May 18, 2023, to 147 months imprisonment by Chief U.S. District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown, after pleading guilty to carjacking and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
According to court documents, on Jan. 10, 2022, COUSAN, armed with a Glock, nine millimeter pistol, carjacked a victim as they exited the Dollar Tree on Morrison Road in New Orleans. As to the carjacking charge, the Court sentenced COUSAN to a sixty-three (63) month term of imprisonment and ordered him to pay restitution in the amount of $11,200.00. For brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, the Court sentenced COUSAN to an eighty-four (84) month term of imprisonment, to be served consecutively. Additionally, COUSAN will serve a three (3) year term of supervised release and pay a $200 mandatory special assessment fee.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the New Orleans Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Greg Kennedy of the Violent Crimes Unit handled the prosecution.