Buford Man Sentenced in Carjacking Case

A Buford man who plead guilty to using and carrying a firearm during a 2011 burglary and carjacking in Flowery Branch has been sentenced to prison.

Rodolfo Esquivel, 28, of Buford, was sentenced Oct. 25 by United States District Judge William C. O’Kelley for using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence.

“Simply put: convicted felons who continue to possess firearms after conviction face more prison time when caught,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates in a released statement.  “Here, Rodolfo Esquivel’s actions went far beyond possession of a firearm; his violent use of the gun to commit a carjacking after he committed burglary, endangered the life of an innocent citizen.”        

Esquivel was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $10,034, according to a press release from the United States Attorney's Office. 

On March 29, 2011, Esquivel and an accomplice went to a home on McEver Road in Flowery Branch. While Esquivel burglarized the house, his accomplice waited outside in a car. When the homeowner returned during the burglary, she approached the accomplice and asked him what he was doing. The man said his friend was looking for a gas can. When the woman turned to walk towards the house, the accomplice drove away leaving Esquivel stranded. Esquivel, who was armed with a handgun, demanded the woman hand over her car keys and threatened to kill her, according to a statement from the United States Attorney's Office.

Esquivel then fired the gun into the ground before taking the woman's keys and her cell phone. Before leaving the scene, Esquivel retrieved a pillowcase containing items he had taken from the house. When the woman attempted to get her purse out of the vehicle, Esquivel pointed the gun at her and threatened to shoot her. The woman subsequently ran to a neighbor's house and called 911.

The case was investigated by Special Agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from the Hall County Sheriff’s Office, the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office and the Gwinnett County Police Department.