Repeat Narcotics Dealer Found Guilty by Federal Jury in Distributing PCP at a Southwest D.C. Rec Center

WASHINGTON – Jermaine Fairnot, 46, a three-time convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was found guilty in U.S. District Court today of his fourth felony in connection with intending to deal narcotics out of his car in the parking lot of a recreation center in Southwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.  

“Jermaine Fairnot is a repeat offender who chose to possess PCP while armed with a loaded gun just feet from a children's playground,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Today a federal jury found him guilty on all counts, and now he's facing a mandatory minimum of 25 years in federal prison, which is exactly where career criminals like Fairnot belong.” 

Following a four-day trial, the federal jury deliberated for approximately six hours and found Fairnot guilty of two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, two counts of unlawful possession with intent to distribute PCP, and unlawful possession of PCP with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a playground. Chief Judge James E. Boasberg scheduled sentencing for Nov. 24, 2026. 

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Metropolitan Police Department officers on Oct. 14, 2022, were on patrol at the King Greenleaf Recreation Center in Southwest Washington when they encountered a group of men standing around a Toyota Camry registered to Fairnot.  

Upon arrival of MPD, the men dispersed. Officers got out of their vehicle and shone their flashlights into the Camry, illuminating the barrel of a handgun protruding from under the driver’s seat. Police recovered a loaded Smith and Wesson semiautomatic pistol, roughly four ounces of PCP, and 56 empty vials.  

A few weeks later, on Nov. 9, 2022, law enforcement executed a warrant for Fairnot’s arrest while he was meeting with his probation officer at the courthouse. Officers seized Fairnot’s car keys and called in a canine unit to conduct a sweep of his Camry in a nearby parking lot. The dogs indicated the presence of firearms or ammunition and officers uncovered 4.85 grams of cocaine base, three vials filled with approximately 30 grams of PCP, empty glass vials, a scale, and a loaded Glock semiautomatic pistol. Officers also recovered mail, receipts, and a vehicle registration card belonging to Fairnot.  

Fairnot subsequently was indicted on two counts of possessing a firearm as a felon, one count of possession with intent to distribute (PWID) PCP, one count of PWID PCP within 1,000 feet of a playground, one count of PWID cocaine, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a drug-trafficking offense. 

Fairnot has three prior narcotics convictions for which he was sentenced to terms of more than a year and was therefore prohibited from possessing a firearm.  

This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives – Washington Field Office, with valuable assistance from the FBI Washington Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Helfand and Joshua Satter. 

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