Minneapolis Felon Sentenced to Over Nine Years in Prison for Illegal Possession of Firearms and Facilitating Drug Trafficking

MINNEAPOLIS – A Minneapolis man has been sentenced to 117 months in prison for the illegal possession of two firearms, and for using one of them in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.

According to court documents, on January 11, 2020, law enforcement officers observed a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed on I-394 in Golden Valley, Minnesota. When police attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver, Dejavareah Marquise Brown, 26, fled from police at over 100 mph, jumped a median, went airborne, and shredded the front tire of the vehicle. Officers twice attempted to stop the vehicle with a PIT maneuver and ultimately disabled the vehicle, at which time Brown fled on foot across the highway. Police found Brown hiding behind a brick pillar at a nearby store and detected a strong odor of alcohol emanating from him. During a subsequent search of the vehicle, officers recovered a 9mm pistol with an extended high-capacity magazine loaded with 31 rounds and an additional 15 rounds of .380-caliber ammunition hidden in the trunk.

In March 2022, law enforcement received information that Brown was selling narcotics from his Minneapolis apartment and executed a search warrant. During the search, officers discovered a loaded .45-caliber pistol, a box of ammunition, 3500 M30 fentanyl pills, over 18 pounds of marijuana, over $650 cash, and miscellaneous drug paraphernalia inside the apartment.

Because Brown has a prior felony conviction, he is prohibited from lawfully possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.

On January 16, 2024, Brown pleaded guilty to two felon-in-possession counts, and to one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. He was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz. 

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, Hennepin County Violent Offender Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Golden Valley Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Bejar prosecuted the case.