Gulfport Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison for Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime

Gulfport, Miss. – A Gulfport man was sentenced to 60 months in prison for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Brad L. Byerley of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”).

According to court records, Javaris Jamir Ramsey, 23, was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by Gulfport police officers on November 21, 2020. Officers smelled marijuana and inquired as to whether the occupants possessed marijuana.  Ramsey then removed a plastic bag containing a green leafy substance from his pocket and surrendered it to the officer.  A subsequent search of the vehicle resulted in the discovery of a bag which contained 16 baggies of a green leafy substance, two suspected THC vapor pens, a digital scale, and a stolen Glock Model 22 handgun, which was loaded. One of the suspected vape pens tested positive for Tetrahydrocannabinol.

Ramsey was indicted by a federal grand jury on January 12, 2021.  He pled guilty on June 24, 2021, to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  

The case was investigated by the DEA and the Gulfport Police Department, and prosecuted by  Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan Buckner.

This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, 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.