Three men and a teenage boy are facing charges after Memphis police say they robbed a man at gunpoint, pistol-whipped him, and then led officers on a chase that ended when their car slammed into a curb near Quince Road, according to WREG. Two of the three firearms recovered from the group were reportedly fitted with illegal devices capable of turning the weapons fully automatic.
According to WREG, officers responded to an armed robbery on Tuesday in the 3600 block of Vivia Street in the Nutbush neighborhood, where two males armed with firearms allegedly approached a male victim and demanded his belongings. The suspects allegedly struck the victim with a firearm before fleeing the scene, the station reports.
Investigators tied the robbery to a black Dodge Charger that had been reported stolen a week earlier, on September 22, from a parking lot in the 3500 block of Westline Drive in Raleigh while the victim was inside his residence, per the same account. Authorities said they later believed a black Dodge Charger spotted near Ridgeway Road and Pebble Beach was connected to the robbery.
Chase Ends in a Crash on Ivy Road
The suspects reportedly fled in a black Volkswagen, with the black Dodge Charger following close behind, the outlet's report states. When officers attempted a traffic stop, the driver did not stop, according to the station's report, instead continuing until the vehicle struck a curb on Ivy Road near Quince Road.
Four suspects got out of the vehicle and ran, but all four were arrested shortly after fleeing, the article notes. Officers recovered three firearms from the group, two of which were equipped with devices commonly referred to as switches — modifications capable of converting a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic one, per the same report.
ATF’s national data show these devices have figured prominently in illegal-firearm recovery cases: from 2017 through 2021, machine-gun conversion devices accounted for 1,704 of 3,122 firearms recovered in those cases, or 54.6%. The figure covers a specific category of national recovery cases over that five-year period; it is not a measure of how common switches are in Memphis or among firearms generally. The agency’s report details the recovery figures.
The devices can carry federal consequences beyond the state charges listed here: the ATF classifies machine-gun conversion devices as machine guns under federal law, even when they are not attached to a firearm, and says unlawful possession can bring up to 10 years in prison. Federal law allows limited exceptions, including for properly licensed possession, but the agency says the devices are illegal to possess without proper licensing. ATF’s guidance on machine-gun conversion devices explains how the devices are treated under federal law.
Charges Filed Against Three Men and a Teen
Police identified the three adult suspects as 20-year-old Damein Jones, 20-year-old Lee Robinson, and 26-year-old Justin Hunter. Jones was charged with theft of property valued between $2,500 and $10,000, unlawful possession of a handgun, evading arrest in a foot pursuit, and possessing a prohibited weapon involving a machine gun conversion device, according to the station's reporting.
Robinson faces charges of theft of property valued between $2,500 and $10,000 and evading arrest in a foot pursuit, and he is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, per the same account. Hunter was charged with theft of property valued between $2,500 and $10,000 and evading arrest in a foot pursuit.
Federal switch cases have also resulted in prison sentences in Memphis. In May 2025, a federal judge sentenced Kalen Thompson to 40 months after he pleaded guilty to possessing a machine gun; the case involved a Glock pistol fitted with a conversion device that Memphis police encountered during an investigation in 2023. That prosecution was separate from the charges in the present case, and does not establish what prosecutors will do here. The Western District of Tennessee U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the sentence.
The 16-year-old boy arrested alongside the three men faces the most extensive list of charges: evading arrest in a vehicle, evading arrest in a foot pursuit, theft of property valued between $2,500 and $10,000, unlawful possession of a weapon, and possessing a prohibited weapon involving a machine gun conversion device, the outlet reports. As of publication, bonds for the three adult men had not yet been set.
