A D.C. man, Tarell Shoemaker, age 21, has been sentenced to over four years in prison for possessing a machine gun, after a plea of guilty entered in federal court earlier this year, authorities announced.
Shoemaker, previously convicted on firearm charges, received a 51-month term followed by three years of supervised release. U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, along with officials from the FBI and MPD, confirmed the sentence, which was handed down by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon. Law enforcement officers discovered a Glock with an illegal conversion device in Shoemaker's bedroom during a September raid.
According to court documents cited by the U.S. Attorney's Office, investigators found a .40 caliber Glock pistol, converted to fire automatically due to a "giggle switch," hidden behind a bed in a Louis Vuitton bag, alongside ammunition in the closet of the accused.
This case comes as the result of a joint task force effort between the FBI and MPD, while Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Coley took up the prosecution, getting support from former assistant Christopher Marin. The firearm had an obliterated serial number and was equipped with an extended magazine; it had 24 rounds and a round in the chamber.
Shoemaker, already on probation for a previous conviction in Maryland at the time of his arrest, admitted that the weapon was indeed his. The firearm discovery and arrest, resulting from a collaborative investigation, further emphasize ongoing concerns over illegal firearms in urban communities.
