Two Augusta men were indicted and eight others recently convicted of firearms charges as part of a collaborative federal crackdown on convicted felons who illegally carry guns.
“Getting guns out of the hands of criminals is an essential element of the fight against violent crime and the disruption of our neighborhoods,” said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, in a news release. “We commend the hard work of our law enforcement officers as they continue to identify and apprehend those who illegally possess firearms.”
The indicted cases are being investigated as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, in collaboration with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia State Patrol.
Augusta men named in federal indictments from the March 2023 term of the U.S. District Court grand jury include:
- Tavarres L. Freeman Jr., 22, charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon
- Todd Joseph Harbuck, 47, charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a stolen firearm
Additional Augusta defendants recently adjudicated on federal firearms charges include:
- Reginald DeMarco Smith, known as “Gunslinger,” 49, was sentenced to 60 months in prison and fined $2,500 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. After Smith fled from a Richmond County Sheriff’s deputy, investigators found a loaded pistol, drugs and more than $18,000 cash in his abandoned vehicle. Smith was located nine months later.
- Tareem Burgess, 39, of Hephzibah, was sentenced to 60 months in prison and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Sheriff’s deputies arrested Burgess after a traffic stop in August 2020 and found a pistol in his vehicle. Burgess has prior convictions for robbery and family violence.
- Rondell Smith, of Hephzibah, was sentenced to 42 months in prison and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Deputies arrested Smith in February 2022 after finding a pistol in his vehicle during a traffic stop. At the time of his arrest, Smith was on supervised release from a 2017 federal conviction for possession of a stolen firearm.
- Amir Dontell Foreman, 27, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Sheriff’s deputies arrested Foreman in August 2022 after finding a pistol in his vehicle during a traffic stop as part of Operation Grace, an operation focused on dismantling drug and gang organizations.
- Kevon Quantae Davis, 23, of Augusta, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Richmond County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Davis in January 2022 as part of Operation Grace, a gang-focused investigation in coordination with the FBI. A member of the Bolt Alley Drive Boyz street gang, Davis dropped a pistol while running on foot from deputies.
- Reco Casey, 33, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. In September 2021, sheriff’s deputies found a pistol in the vehicle where Casey was a passenger. Casey was on state felony probation at the time of his arrest.
- Taipai La’Don Brewer, 43, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Sheriff’s deputies arrested Brewer in July 2022 after finding a pistol and drugs in his car during a traffic stop as part of Operation Grace.
- Terrance Webster Dunn, 32, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. A previously convicted felon, Dunn was arrested in October 2022 when deputies found him riding a bike in a shopping center parking lot, taking photos of himself with a pistol in his waistband.
Under federal law, it is illegal for the following to possess a firearm: a felon, illegal alien or unlawful user of a controlled substance. It is also unlawful to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense or a violent crime. It is also illegal to purchase – or even to attempt to purchase – firearms if the buyer is a prohibited person or illegally purchasing a firearm on behalf of others. Lying on ATF Form 4473, which is used to lawfully purchase a firearm, also is a federal offense.
In the past four years, more than 800 defendants have been federally charged in the Southern District of Georgia for illegal firearms offenses. Federal law increased the maximum penalty for illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon to 15 years, up from 10, for those found in possession after June 25, 2022.
