A New Orleans man, identified as 35-year-old ARMOND BURNETTE, has entered a guilty plea to charges related to drug possession with intent to distribute and firearm offences. The admission came as a response to a three-count indictment, where BURNETTE was accused of violating Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(C), for controlled substance distribution, and Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The announcement of the guilty plea was made on February 11, and pointed to a maximum possible punishment of 20 years in prison for the drug charges and up to 15 years for the firearm possession, as documented by the U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of Louisiana.
According to records from the court, on June 23, 2023, when BURNETTE was observed in the French Quarter and upon approach by NOPD officers, fled, before being shortly apprehended, having several attachments he was wanted for. He was found carrying a plastic bag that contained twenty-one individually wrapped baggies of fentanyl and 3.39 grams of cocaine. In a separate encounter on April 25, 2024, during an NOPD drug investigation, BURNETTE exited a silver BMW and was subsequently spotted entering a bar with a backpack, only to leave the establishment sans backpack. NOPD officers recovered a bag near a poker machine inside the bar containing a stolen .40 caliber Smith & Wesson firearm after intercepting BURNETTE, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of Louisiana.
A search of the BMW yielded another bag, which contained additional fentanyl, a digital scale, and methamphetamine. An investigation of the backpack itself revealed several doses of Tapentadol, ecstasy pills, cocaine, and the aforementioned stolen firearm. BURNETTE now faces severe penalties, including substantial prison time, supervised release, fines reaching up to $1,250,000 in total, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100 per count.
This case falls under the broad scope of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), an initiative designed to unite all echelons of law enforcement and community members in a collaborative effort to curb violent crime and gun trafficking. Launched with a renewed strategy on May 26, 2021, PSN is built on fostering trust within communities, supporting organizations that work to prevent violence before it happens, and setting strategic priorities for enforcement. The U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of Louisiana informs that the goal is to make neighborhoods more secure for everyone involved.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was the leading agency in the investigation of this case, which is now under the prosecutorial management of Assistant United States Attorney Michael E. Trummel of the Violent Crimes Unit. BURNETTE, whose sentencing will be set on a future date not yet disclosed, arguably stands as a testament to the complexities entwined in the criminal justice system and the ongoing war against illegal narcotics and firearm offences in the United States.
