Two Missouri men with previous felony convictions have been handed prison sentences for firearms offenses, including possession of homemade silencers. Steven Matthew Dinzebach, 35, received a 72-month sentence, while Bryan Daniel Flynn, 44, was sentenced to 75 months, both followed by terms of supervised release, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.
According to the same report, Flynn's offenses were uncovered when detectives with a warrant searched his home and discovered an illegal cache of 30 firearms, silencers, ballistic vests, stolen items, and drugs. On July 25, 2023, the search yielded not just a multitude of weapons but also 4.48 grams of cocaine, methamphetamine, diazepam tablets, alprazolam tablets, and 300 grams of psilocybin. In a further search of his property, officials found a stolen Ford F250 and more firearms.
Dinzebach's guilty plea earlier in May exposed his role in supplying firearms to Flynn. Investigators found him in possession of several guns, one of which was equipped with a homemade silencer. It was revealed that he engaged in firearms trafficking, inflating the cost of weapons before selling them to Flynn, as obtained by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Both cases were part of the wider Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative, aimed at reducing violent crime through integrated community and law enforcement efforts. Bernard G. Hansen, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Kansas City Field Division, stressed the significance of the partnership between agencies in tackling gun violence. "Today's sentencing demonstrates the outstanding partnership between ATF and the St. Louis Police Department as well as the commitment we share to work together in keeping firearms out of the hands of felons so that our streets are safer for everyone," Hansen said, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
This commitment to community safety underlines federal and local law enforcement's continued resolve to thwart the cycle of recidivism among felons, particularly regarding illegal firearms possession. These sentences underscore the ongoing challenge and the collaborative strides taken to ensure safer neighborhoods.
