A 40-year-old Portsmouth man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after investigators say he was running drug sales out of his home while illegally keeping a rifle and a handgun nearby. Moses Elijah Williams was sentenced for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, a combination that under federal law guarantees years of mandatory prison time on top of whatever sentence his drug charge alone would have carried.
Williams appeared before U.S. District Judge Jamar K. Walker in Norfolk Courtroom 5 on September 30 for his sentencing hearing, according to federal court schedule records. The case was handled in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia under case number 2:26-cr-52, as detailed by the Department of Justice. The firearms allegation was a separate federal violation layered on top of the drug charges.
Months of Undercover Buys Led to the Raid
The case against Williams didn't come together overnight. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, controlled drug purchases began in August 2025 when Chesapeake police executed transactions targeting Williams, with Suffolk police following up in September 2025 by conducting four separate controlled purchases of cocaine and heroin directly at his Portsmouth residence.
Those undercover buys, carried out by police departments working outside their own home cities, built the probable cause that led to a search warrant. On October 2, 2025, investigators executed a multi-jurisdictional raid at Williams' Portsmouth home. The search turned up approximately one kilogram of powder cocaine along with smaller quantities of crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin, plus digital scales, a semi-automatic rifle, and a handgun, per the same DEA account.
Regional Task Force Made the Case Possible
The investigation drew on a wide net of law enforcement resources. It was conducted by the DEA's Washington Division, ATF's Washington Field Division, and the HIDTA Hampton Roads Regional Drug Initiative, working alongside the Suffolk Police Department and Chesapeake Police Department, the agency's report states.
The HIDTA Hampton Roads Regional Drug Initiative operates under the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. HIDTA programs coordinate law enforcement efforts, according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
A booking record lists Williams as booked in Virginia Beach on October 2, 2025, on a felony probation-violation charge, according to Recently Booked.
Why the Gun Charge Guarantees Extra Prison Time
The firearm count against Williams carries legal weight that goes beyond the drug conviction itself. Under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison, and federal law requires that term to run consecutively to any sentence imposed for the underlying drug charge, according to Cornell Law School's Legal Information Institute. That statutory requirement means judges have no discretion to let the gun sentence overlap with time served for drug trafficking.
Judge Walker presided over the sentencing.
Court documents reviewed in the case confirmed that Suffolk and Chesapeake police had conducted the controlled purchases from Williams that ultimately formed the backbone of the federal prosecution. It remains unclear what specific prior felony conviction established Williams' status as a person barred from possessing firearms, and whether any additional suppliers or co-conspirators tied to the cocaine distribution were indicted alongside him in case 2:26-cr-52.
