DC Mayor Muriel Bowser encountered a backlash after she tweeted on Sunday tips to prevent car theft in the wake of the death of Mohammad Anwar, who was killed when his vehicle was carjacked on 23 March.
In what many people suspected may have been a scheduled tweet, Bowser shared tips like parking in a safe spot, locking your car and keep track of the keys.
The tips came although the mayor never officially reacted to Tuesday's fatal carjacking, causing netizens to lash out at Bowser, call her "heartless" and accuse her of victim-blaming.
Users recalled that Anwar was doing his job and noted that "it was broad daylight" when he was attacked by two teenage girls, particularly slamming the tweet for naming car theft as a "crime of opportunity".
Some even thought of particular "opportunities" for carjacking.
Others stressed that it is the job of the authorities to ensure that there is less car crime and not put the blame for that on people.
One user criticised the tips themselves, particularly the advice to find a safe parking place in Washington DC.
The carjacking that killed Anwar occurred on Tuesday, with the DC Metropolitan Police Department saying that when they responded to an accident in Van Street, in the city's southeast, they arrived to discover "an adult male suffering from life-threatening injuries", later identified as Anwar.
After arriving at the hospital, Anwar was pronounced dead. Police reported that two underage girls, 13 and 15, had attacked him with a taser intending to steal his vehicle.
According to the New York Post citing officials, the girls put the car in gear and started moving while Anwar was partially outside of the car, and it "lurched forward with Anwar still hanging from it".
On Tuesday, the two teenagers were charged with felony murder and armed carjacking.