Fayetteville Man Sentenced for Drug and Firearm Offenses

RALEIGH – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court today, Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III, sentenced DARIUS JEROME BRADLEY, 28, of Fayetteville, NC to 204 months of imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release.

BRADLEY was named in a three-count Indictment filed on August 2, 2016. On October 25, 2016, BRADLEY pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute a quantity of marijuana and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

On January 10, 2016, officers with the Fayetteville Police Department (FPD) responded to an anonymous call from a concerned citizen regarding individuals smoking marijuana. When officers arrived at the scene and approached the vehicle, they noticed the strong smell of marijuana and observed BRADLEY exit the driver’s side. Upon searching the vehicle, officers seized 10 grams of marijuana, a loaded .380 caliber handgun, a digital scale, and a box of plastic bags used for distribution. BRADLEY was arrested, but subsequently released on bond on January 11, 2016.

On February 3, 2016, FPD officers again responded to a citizen’s complaint of suspected drug activity from a vehicle in a residential section of Fayetteville. Officer initiated blue lights and siren for a car matching the description given. Eventually BRADLEY stopped the car that he was driving, but remained in the driver’s seat. Officers approached the car. BRADLEY then started the vehicle, put the car in reverse, and began backing up at a high rate of speed. One of the officers was forced to jump out of the way to avoid being struck by BRADLEY’s vehicle. BRADLEY crashed his vehicle into a nearby tree. When the defendant exited the vehicle, a struggle ensued until he was apprehended. BRADLEY was found in possession of cocaine and of cocaine base. There were two other adults and one juvenile in BRADLEY’s car. Upon searching the vehicle, officers seized 12 grams of marijuana from the driver’s floorboard.

This case was part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative which encourages federal, state, and local agencies to cooperate in a unified “team effort” against gun crime, targeting repeat offenders who continually plague their communities.

The Fayetteville Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) conducted the criminal investigation of this case. Assistant United States Attorney S. Katherine Burnette handled the prosecution of this case for the government.