Battle Creek Man Indicted for Possessing Over Four Kilograms of Methamphetamine and Machine guns

          GRAND RAPIDS – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten announced that a federal grand jury in Grand Rapids returned a superseding indictment charging Travon Deshaun-Roderick Mansker, 26, of Battle Creek, with possessing over four kilograms of methamphetamine intended for resale and 10 firearms as a felon. Two of the weapons had been modified to meet the federal definition of “machineguns.”  

          “Drugs and guns are a dangerous combination, and we are committed to getting illegal guns and drugs off of our streets,” said U.S. Attorney Totten. “The prevalence of machinegun conversion devices in the Western District is a particularly troubling trend that my office takes seriously.”

          The charges arise from an April 27, 2023, search of a Battle Creek residence where investigators seized the drugs, firearms, approximately a thousand rounds of ammunition, various high-capacity magazines, pill presses, and other drug trafficking paraphernalia. A photograph of the evidence seized from the search is provided below:

          In the superseding indictment, the grand jury alleges that on April 27, 2023, Mansker possessed methamphetamine that he intended to distribute to others. The superseding indictment also charges Mansker with possession of a machinegun for two firearms with different conversion devices installed and possession of a firearm by a felon for ten firearms, including a firearm silencer (a “firearm” under federal law). The superseding indictment is attached.

          “This indictment should serve as a reminder that the DEA, and our law enforcement partners, will relentlessly pursue these individuals,” said Orville O. Greene, Special Agent in Charge of Detroit Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration. “Our combined efforts are to not only stop the illegal distribution of dangerous illicit drugs, but also to prevent the associated violence that plagues our communities.”

          The defendant will be arraigned on the superseding indictment before U.S. Magistrate Phillip J. Green of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan. If convicted of the drug charge, Mansker faces a statutory mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison with a maximum penalty up to life.

          The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Battle Creek Police Department (BCPD), with additional support by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). 

          An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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