A Virginia man has been handed a 14-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to charges of trafficking firearms and distributing narcotics, as announced by Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Jyshun Trower, a 27-year-old from Virginia Beach, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote, facing both the lengthy prison term and an additional five years of supervised release following his term, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
In a series of illegal transactions between June and December of 2023, Trower sold around 43 firearms, including high-capacity magazines, and components that convert semiautomatic pistols into fully automatic weapons to undercover agents and other individuals which found itself amongst the bustling, sometimes nefarious underground commerce of Manhattan and the greater New York City Area, his operations were detailed in court records. The array of weaponry included semiautomatic rifles, assault-style rifles and pistols, ammunition, and a 'ghost gun'—a firearm with no serial numbers traceable by law enforcement.
Beyond gun trafficking, Trower also conspired to distribute counterfeit pharmaceutical pills laced with the powerful synthetic opioid, fentanyl; it's been said, in the course of a single transaction, he aimed to sell an undercover law enforcement agent as many as 10,000 such counterfeit pills. It was on December 14, 2023, when law enforcement officials seized the moment to apprehend Trower, finding him in possession of both the promised firearms and a cache of over a hundred fentanyl-laced pills. "Jyshun Trower placed countless New Yorkers’ lives in danger, attempting to flood the City with over 40 illegal firearms, including military-style assault weapons, that destroy human bodies and lives," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in the statement.
The relentless efforts of the New York City Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York Division, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations New York Field Office led to the investigation's success, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Daniels leading the prosecution. Handled by the Office's Narcotics Unit, the case serves as a cautionary tale of the shadowy divides between law and chaos.
