Fayetteville Today

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina issued the following announcement on Feb. 18.

United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that today in federal court, United States District Judge James C. Dever III sentenced DESMOND EDWARDS, 21, of Fayetteville, North Carolina to 120 months’ imprisonment, followed by 3 years’ of supervised release.

EDWARDS was named in a Criminal Information filed on October 25, 2019, charging him with possession of a stolen firearm and ammunition.  On November 15, 2019, EDWARDS pled guilty to that charge. 

According to the investigation, on May 1, 2018, the Fayetteville Police Department conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle with a broken windshield suspected of being involved in an earlier reported accident.  When the officer approached the driver’s side of the vehicle, he made contact with EDWARDS.  The officer could smell the odor of marijuana coming from within the vehicle, and removed the occupants.  The officer then deployed his K-9 around the vehicle, and the dog alerted for the presence of contraband.  Officers searched the vehicle and recovered a loaded, .25 caliber handgun underneath the driver’s seat and .25 caliber ammunition in the rear pocket of the passenger seat.  EDWARDS later admitted to possessing the firearm and ammunition and that he had reason to believe the firearm and ammunition were stolen.  EDWARDS is a validated member of the Nine-Trey Bloods street gang.

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina implements the PSN Program through its Take Back North Carolina Initiative.  This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices on a sustained basis in those communities to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.

Investigation of this case was conducted by the Fayetteville Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF).  Assistant United States Attorney Chad Rhoades handled the prosecution of this case for the government.

Original source can be found here.