INDIANAPOLIS - Anthony Porter, 36, of Indianapolis, has been sentenced to 11 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to carjacking, discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.According to court documents, on April 17, 2023, around 8:30pm, Porter had been loitering by the entrance of a local convenience store located at 9852 East 21st Street in Indianapolis, Indiana, when he followed a male customer to his car. Porter approached the victim’s car alone, brandished a firearm, and forced him to leave the car. As the victim was getting out of the car, Porter discharged his firearm at the victim as he fled to safety with his hands in the air. Porter fled the scene in the stolen vehicle.After a brief search for the victim’s vehicle, Porter was later located, arrested, and interviewed. During a subsequent search of the victim’s vehicle, officers found a 9mm handgun inside of Porter’s fanny pack.

Ruger 9mm in case; image by Robert Nelson, via Flickr, CC BY 2.0, no changes.

At the time of his arrest, Porter had been previously convicted of two residential entry felonies. The felony convictions prohibit Porter from ever legally possessing a firearm.“This violent criminal illegally armed himself, carjacked an innocent victim, and fired his weapon at the victim with utter disregard for human life,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “Reducing gun violence in our communities is a top federal law enforcement priority, and I commend the FBI and IMPD for their work to hold this repeat offender accountable.”The FBI and IMPD investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson. Judge Stinson also ordered that Porter be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for 5 years following his release from federal prison.U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy C. Fugate, who prosecuted this case.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.