Armed Drug Trafficker Pleads Guilty

CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Alton Dunn, 30 of Rochester, pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge David G. Larimer to the felony charges of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon.  The drug charge carries a maximum possible penalty of five years imprisonment, and a fine of $250,000 or both.  The firearm charge carries a maximum prison term of 10 years, and a fine of $250,000, or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Moynihan, who is handling the case, stated that Dunn was arrested on July 31, 2018, after officers from the Rochester Police Department, who were patrolling the area of Child Street in the City of Rochester, saw a Lincoln Navigator with a license plate cover obscuring the vehicle’s license plate.  Officers pulled the Navigator to the side of the road, approached it and identified Dunn, who had been convicted of Robbery in the Second Degree in 2007, as the driver.  They also learned he did not have a valid driver’s license.  After ordering him to step from the Navigator, officers searched Dunn and found a small plastic vial of marijuana in his pocket.  The officers could also smell marijuana coming from inside the Navigator.  They searched the vehicle and found a loaded semiautomatic handgun, with a defaced serial number, in the front passenger door.  Officers also recovered a bag containing 2 vials of marijuana in the center console of the Navigator.  In the rear seats, officers discovered a bag from which they recovered 39 plastic vials, each containing marijuana.  In the bag, officers also found a champagne case which contained more marijuana.  Dunn admitted that he intended to distribute the marijuana. 
  
The matter was brought by the United States Attorney’s Office as part of its Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative.  PSN is 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.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief La’Ron Singletary, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 16, 2020, at 2:00 PM before the Hon. David G. Larimer.

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