Meridian Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime

Jackson, Miss. - A Meridian man was sentenced to 60 months in prison for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, announced U.S. Attorney Darren LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Kurt Thielhorn of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

According to court records, on August 10, 2019, Reginald D'Mond Kelly, 44, was arrested by officers of the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office for pending charges related to the sale of narcotics. During the course of the arrest, Kelly's vehicle was searched, and the officers found methamphetamine and a 9mm caliber handgun in the vehicle's trunk.

Kelly pled guilty on September 14, 2021, to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

The Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office and the ATF investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Kirkham prosecuted the case.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice's violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

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