Guilty Plea Secured in Conspiracy to Commit Firearms Trafficking

            WASHINGTON – Juwon Anderson, 22, of Washington D.C., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to one count of conspiracy to commit firearms trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., ATF Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Washington Field Division, and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.   

            U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson scheduled a sentencing hearing for June 5, 2025. The defendant was arrested on December 15, 2023, and has been detained ever since.

            Others charged in the conspiracy are: Vincent Lee Alston, aka “Vedo,” 22, and Niquan Odumn, aka “Stickz” and “Debo,” 22, all of Washington, D.C., and Cy’Juan Hemsley, aka “Juan,” 18, of District Heights, Maryland, and Tyjuan McNeal, 28, of Washington, D.C

            According to the court documents, on December 13, 2023, the defendant and at least four co-conspirators drove from Washington, D.C. to the A & D pawn shop in Maryland in two vehicles. Once at the A & D pawn shop, one of the co-conspirators used a portable saw to cut the locks on a pull-down security gate covering the entrance to the A & D Pawn Shop. Another co-conspirator then used a crowbar-type tool to pry open the main door to the A&D Pawn Shop.  Another co-conspirator then used a crowbar-type tool to pry open the main door to the A & D pawn shop. After breaking into the A & D pawn shop, the defendant and four other co-conspirators then entered the store, grabbed firearms from the store’s shelves and display racks, and left the store with firearms. In total, the defendant and his co-conspirators stole at least 34 firearms from the A & D Pawn shop. Anderson and his co-conspirators then used social media to advertise the sale of the stolen firearms. Two days after the burglary, on December 15, 2023, Anderson was arrested with two of the stolen firearms.

            This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Washington Field Division and the Metropolitan Police Department, with assistance from the ATF Baltimore Field Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shehzad Akhtar and Ryan Lipes.