WACO, Texas — Eight Texas men have been indicted on federal drug and gun charges in Waco, the Office of U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District announced on Thursday.
A federal grand jury indicted Jeremiah Pittman, 21; Shamall McDonald, 21; Juan Christian Rodriguez-Luhan, 20; Raeshawn Demond Roberts, 21; Jacob Deshaun Raglin, 24; Javion Lavelle Cooper, 19; Tyson Charae Hawthorne, 21; and Dantawn Richardson, 20, on charges of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of a firearm.
The U.S. Department of Justice office said that Raglin was arrested in Arlington on Tuesday and the remaining defendants were arrested in Waco.
The attorney's office stated that Richardson was already in Waco Police custody on unrelated charges.
Law enforcement recovered four firearms, 13 ounces of methamphetamine and over four pounds of marijuana during the arrests, the DOJ said.
If the defendants are convicted, the DOJ said each of the eight men could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the marijuana charges and a minimum of five years in federal prison consecutive to any other prison term for the firearm charges.
After considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, a sentence will be determined by a federal district court judge.
Investigators in this case include members of the Texas Anti-Gang Taskforce, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); the Waco Police Department; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS); the McLennan County Sheriff's Department; and the McLennan County District Attorney's Office.
The prosecutor in this case is Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Blanton.
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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. The Texas Anti-Gang Taskforce is a group of law enforcement agencies and prosecutors focused on reducing gang violence and dismantling gangs in the Central Texas area.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
