The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia announced that ten defendants face federal felony firearms charges after indictment by a U.S. District Court grand jury in the Southern District of Georgia.
Press Release:
All of those charged are prohibited from possessing firearms. The cases are being investigated under the Department of Justice initiative targeting illegal firearms, and in coordination with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and local law enforcement agencies.
“A fundamental requirement for safe streets is keeping guns out of the hands of individuals who are prohibited from possessing them,” said David H. Estes, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. “We applaud our collaboration with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and our state and local law enforcement partners in enforcing laws to remove illegally possessed firearms from our communities.”
In the past three years, more than 660 defendants were federally charged in the Southern District of Georgia for illegal firearms offenses – most often for carrying a firearm after having been convicted of a previous felony. The charge carries a penalty upon conviction of up to 10 years in prison, and there is no parole in the federal system.
“ATF will continue to dedicate federal resources in conjunction with those crucial law enforcement contributions of local agencies to target defendants that have no business carrying firearms, given their previous criminal conduct,” said Beau Kolodka, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the ATF.
Those named in federal indictments from the March 2021 term of the U.S. District Court grand jury include:
- Malcolm Robinson Brown, 38, of Augusta, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, and Possession of Ammunition by a Prohibited Person, referring to a prior conviction for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence;
- Matthew Kearse, 29, of Savannah, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon;
- Brandon Demarcus Reedy, 34, of Augusta, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon;
- Kijordan Markel Ceaser, 21, of Thomson, Ga., charged with Illegal Receipt of a Firearm by a Person Under Indictment;
- Timetrius Dontrel Neal, 23, of Thomson, Ga., charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person, referring to a prior conviction on a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence; Possession of a Firearm by an Unlawful Drug User; and Illegal Receipt of a Firearm by a Person Under Indictment;
- Telly Green, 33, of Savannah, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon;
- Marcus Rashad Allen, 33, of Savannah, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
- Dameon Duncan, 21, of Savannah, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
- Darius Edwards, 33, of Pembroke, Ga., charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon; and,
- John Calvin Young Jr., 35, of Rincon, Ga., charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
The charge of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person carries a possible penalty upon conviction of up to 10 years in prison. There is no parole in the federal system.
Criminal indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
These cases also are investigated under the Prosecutor to Prosecutor Program (P3), in which federal and state prosecutors collaborate to determine the most appropriate venue for adjudication of alleged crimes.
In addition to these cases, at least three defendants recently have appeared in U.S. District Court on federal firearms charges, including:
- Courtney Raynard Spann, 29, of Statesboro, sentenced to 96 months in prison and ordered to serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term after pleading guilty to Possession of Ammunition by a Convicted Felon;
- Onesimo Ochoa-Santos, 35, of Brunswick, sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to serve one year of supervised release upon completion of his prison term after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by an Illegal Alien.
- Alexander Wallace, 36, of Savannah, sentenced to 95 months in prison and ordered to serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
Agencies investigating these cases include the ATF; Savannah Police Department; the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office; Columbia County Sheriff’s Office; the McDuffie County Sheriff’s Office; the Rincon Police Department; the Brunswick Police Department; and the Port Wentworth Police Department, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service.
The cases are being prosecuted for the United States by Southern District U.S. Attorney’s Office Assistant U.S. Attorneys, including Project Guardian Coordinator Henry W. Syms; Jennifer Stanley; Tara M. Lyons; Alejandro V. Pascual IV; Joshua S. Bearden; Tania D. Groover; Jennifer Kirkland; Edwin Caban; Joseph McCool; Marcela C. Mateo; John P. Harper III; and Noah Abrams.
Under federal law, it is illegal for an individual to possess a firearm if he or she falls into one of nine prohibited categories including being a felon; illegal alien; or unlawful user of a controlled substance. Further, it is unlawful to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense or violent crime. It is also illegal to purchase – or even to attempt to purchase – firearms if the buyer is a prohibited person or illegally purchasing a firearm on behalf of others. Lying on ATF Form 4473, which is used to lawfully purchase a firearm, also is a federal offense.
