A man sentenced to 11 years in prison after federal officials claimed he organized illegal gun trafficking over state lines from Greenville and elsewhere.
Jakil Deandre Bond, 28, received a 141-month prison sentence for unlawful firearm trafficking and drug distribution, according to the Eastern District of North Carolina US Attorney’s Office on Friday.
They claimed Bond, a verified member of the Crips street gang’s Rollin 40’s set, planned the purchase of firearms through co-defendants and straw purchases Malik Jaree Bazemore and Ti’quiran Rodgers, who is also a verified gang member.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Greenville Police Department, Windsor Police Department, Pitt County Sheriff’s Office, and the D.C. Metro Police Department.
US Attorney Michael F. Easley Jr. described the operation as “an iron pipeline of firepower from North Carolina to Washington, D.C., where shootings fueled further gang violence.”
“The Greenville Police Department works seamlessly with local, state, and federal partners to ensure that all crimes are fully investigated and prosecuted, whether they occur solely within the city limits of Greenville or in instances such as this one where they extend far beyond our jurisdiction,” says Greenville Police Chief Ted Sauls.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Bond, Bazemore, Rodgers, and Barron Nathaniel Shaw conspired to traffic over 50 weapons from North Carolina to Washington, D.C., and other East Coast cities between 2019 and November 2021.
Bazemore and Rodgers, both North Carolina residents, bought weapons from federally approved dealers in the state before transferring them to Bond, Shaw, and others. On various handgun transaction documents, Bazemore and Rodgers fraudulently reported that they had purchased the firearms for personal use.
According to the attorney’s office, D.C. Metro Police discovered numerous firearms at crime scenes and shootings in September 2019, prompting the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to launch an investigation. Police in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and North Carolina discovered multiple firearms at crime sites and in the hands of confirmed gang members.
According to the attorney’s office, Bond introduced Bazemore and Rodgers to Shaw and other contacts in D.C. in order to extend their straw purchase operations. Bond and Shaw compensated Bazemore and Rodgers for the rifles’ purchase price while rewarding them for the transactions.
On January 24, 2023, ATF agents arrived at Bond’s Greenville residence to serve him with a federal arrest warrant in connection with the gun trafficking conspiracy. Bond exited the back of the house and placed items on the back porch as they approached the front door. Agents searched the flat and discovered 731 grams of cocaine, 33 grams of cocaine base, 64 grams of fentanyl, three weapons, various ammunition, and other drug paraphernalia items.
On September 8, 2023, Barron Shaw received a 48-month sentence for trading guns without a license.
On September 18, 2024, a federally licensed firearms dealer sentenced Malik Bazemore to 24 months for dealing firearms without a license and making a materially false statement.
On November 7, 2024, a federally licensed firearms dealer sentenced Ti’quiran Rodgers to 24 months for engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license and making a materially false statement.