Buffalo Man Who Attempted To Flee From Police Pleads Guilty To Gun Charge

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

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Demetrius Parker, 38, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  

Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth T. Molisani, who is handling the case, stated that on October 10, 2017, an individual called 911 and reported a road rage incident that had occurred near the intersection of Hertel and Delaware Avenues in Buffalo. The caller (victim) reported that the driver of a green minivan had pulled alongside his vehicle, pointed a gun at him, and threatened to shoot him. The victim described the driver as a black male with a beard wearing a black hat, and the gun as a black handgun with a square-shaped nozzle and orange sights.

Approximately 30 minutes later, two Buffalo Police officers on patrol located the  green minivan on Olympic Avenue in Buffalo and initiated a traffic stop after the minivan turned on to Alma Avenue. An officer approached the minivan being driven by the defendant. While speaking with the officer, Parker put the vehicle into gear and attempted to flee the scene with the officer hanging halfway in the vehicle. The minivan crossed Alma Avenue and drove up over the curb in front of a residence and came to a stop. Following a physical struggle, officers secured and detained the defendant.

Subsequently, officers recovered a loaded .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, next to the driver's seat in the minivan. The victim was transported to the scene on Alma Avenue by officers and immediately identified the minivan as the vehicle involved in the road rage incident, and Parker was positively identified him as the driver who threatened him with a gun.

The defendant was previously convicted of Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree in Erie County Court on March 30, 2006, and is legally prohibited from possessing a firearm.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John Devito, New York Field Division, and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Byron Lockwood.

Sentencing is scheduled for October 27, 2021, before Judge Arcara. 

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