Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that Jacquerie Labronze Gibson, also known as “Compton,” has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for trafficking firearms and crack cocaine.
Gibson, 44, of Hartford, will also serve three years of supervised release following his imprisonment.
According to court documents and courtroom statements, law enforcement began investigating Gibson in August 2021 after receiving information that he was trafficking firearms purchased in North Carolina by Jacintre Holley and others acting on Holley’s behalf.
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Investigators also uncovered that Gibson was distributing narcotics—sometimes trading them for firearms—and converting cocaine into crack cocaine at his apartment on Wethersfield Avenue in Hartford.
On August 12, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Gibson’s residence, where they seized:
- A loaded Taurus Model G3 9mm handgun
- Additional ammunition
- A bulletproof vest
- Approximately 90 grams of crack cocaine
- Drug processing and packaging materials
- $860 in cash
Gibson was arrested at the scene.
The investigation revealed that Gibson’s firearm source in North Carolina had sold approximately 15 firearms to Gibson and 50 additional firearms to another buyer in Connecticut. At least 16 of these firearms have since been recovered at crime scenes in and around Connecticut, including one weapon used in a homicide in Middletown on May 16, 2021.
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Gibson has a significant criminal record, including prior felony convictions for drug offenses, burglary, failure to appear, and a 2005 conviction for first-degree assault stemming from a knife attack on his then-girlfriend. Federal law prohibits individuals with felony convictions from possessing firearms or ammunition that have moved through interstate or foreign commerce.
Gibson has been detained since his arrest. On August 31, 2023, he pleaded guilty to charges of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base (crack) and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala handed down the 144-month sentence on Friday in Hartford federal court.
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Jacintre Holley, Gibson’s firearm supplier, was previously sentenced to 127 months in federal prison in the Eastern District of North Carolina on February 23, 2023.
This case was a collaborative effort by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Middletown Police Department, and the Greenville, North Carolina, Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Pierpont, Jr, prosecuted the case.
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