Baltimore Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Murder of a Federal Officer

Baltimore, Maryland – Davon Rogers, age 40, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to attempted murder of a federal officer in connection with a shooting that occurred on December 29, 2021.  Co-defendant Juan Hester, age 41, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty on July 10, 2023, to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.

The guilty pleas were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Division; and Acting Commissioner Richard Worley of the Baltimore Police Department.

According to Rogers’ guilty plea, during the evening of December 29, 2021, members of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) were conducting surveillance in the 2500 block of W. Fayette Street in Baltimore, as part of an ongoing federal drug trafficking investigation.  One of the members of the surveillance team was a DEA Special Agent who was in the area in his unmarked vehicle conducting covert surveillance in connection with the narcotics investigation.

Rogers admitted that while the Special Agent was inside of his vehicle, he and another individual approached the vehicle and began looking inside.  The Special Agent tried to avoid being seen by laying down in the rear area the vehicle.  After they looked inside of the Special Agent’s vehicle, Rogers and the second individual walked away from the vehicle.  Several minutes later, the Special Agent got into the driver’s seat of his vehicle to try to drive away from the area.  By that time, Rogers and the second individual had returned to the area.  At approximately 9:18 p.m., as the Special Agent began driving away, Rogers and the second individual began shooting at the Special Agent.  The Special Agent was nearly struck by one or more of the bullets, and his vehicle sustained multiple bullet strikes.  Specifically, bullets struck the driver’s side front and rear doors, the rear window, the trunk, and the passenger’s side sun visor and ceiling area.

As detailed in the plea agreement, the Special Agent was able to drive for approximately one block before crashing his vehicle into a nearby parked car and running to safety.  After the shooting, Rogers and the second individual fled the scene.  Investigators recovered multiple shell casings, of two different calibers, from the area where Rogers and the second individual shot at the Special Agent.  

After the shooting, search warrants were executed at co-defendant Juan Hester’s residence and at Rogers’ residence on December 30, 2021 and January 4, 2022.  Investigators recovered 113 grams of almost pure methamphetamine hydrochloride, 814 grams of THC, 34 grams of mixtures containing cocaine, three grams of mixtures containing fentanyl, and various cutting agents from Hester’s residence and investigators seized approximately fourteen rounds of .40 caliber ammunition from Rogers’ residence.  Based on new information received, two additional search warrants were executed on Hester’s residence on January 1, 2022 and January 6, 2022 and investigators recovered approximately 337 grams of mixtures or substances containing fentanyl, 78 rounds of 7.62 caliber ammunition, 32 rounds of .22 caliber ammunition and one handgun magazine.  Hester admitted that he maintained the residence as a premises for manufacturing or distributing controlled substances.

Rogers, Hester, and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreements, Rogers will be sentenced to nine years in federal prison and Hester will be sentenced to 14 years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander has scheduled sentencing for Rogers on September 11, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. and for Hester on September 12, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. 

This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (“ATF”) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (“NIBIN”).  NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms.  NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles.  For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (“PSN”), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Anne Arundel County, Howard County, and Baltimore County Police Departments, the Laurel Police Department, the Annapolis Police Department, the Maryland Transportation Authority Police Department, and the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anatoly Smolkin and Darryl Tarver, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psn and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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