A Charlotte man, identified as 22-year-old Durell Smith, has been handed a 54-month prison term followed by two years of supervised release for the possession of machineguns, as stated by U.S. Attorney Dena J. King for the Western District of North Carolina.
The details of the case emerged partly when Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) officers noticed Smith parking a vehicle with a phony tag and seated before a local residence. It was craftily painted with distinctive white skulls; upon closer inspection, officers discovered a 9mm Glock handgun modified with a machinegun conversion device, or "Glock switch". In addition, the modified firearm was equipped with a 30-round magazine and had been reported as stolen. A further probe into the vehicle revealed yet another machinegun, a .357 caliber Glock, similarly fitted with a switch, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Smith, who had been arrested months after the initial seizure of the machineguns at the same residence where additional stolen firearms were later recovered. On April 24, he pleaded guilty to possession of a machinegun and awaits designation to a federal prison facility, while in federal custody. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case, Bennie Mims, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Charlotte Field Division, and Chief Johnny Jennings of the CMPD, were also acknowledged for their roles in the investigation by U.S. Attorney King.
The arrest and subsequent prosecution of Smith are part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that forges a collaborative approach with all law enforcement levels and communities to foster safer neighborhoods. The program was rebooted with a refocused strategy on May 26, 2021, which hinges on building trust within the community, strategic and focused enforcement priorities, and measuring the outcomes of these efforts.
