A man who used the social media site Snapchat to traffic in illegal machine gun conversion devices — also known as switches or auto sears — and privately made “ghost guns” was given a two-year prison term Tuesday.
Man whose Snapchat group sold illegal ‘switches’ and ghost guns in Minnesota gets two years
Avont Drayton’s attorney said his client ‘thought of these items as really cool tools in a similar manner to buying a new power tool.’
The Minnesota Star Tribune
April 23, 2024 at 8:50PM
Avont A. Drayton, 22, of Burnsville was sentenced in U.S. District Court after pleading guilty to unlawful possession of machine guns, specifically that he sold these devices to undercover agents on numerous occasions in the spring of 2023.
Ahead of sentencing, prosecutors pushed for Drayton to receive a prison term of 3¾ years.
“It appears that Drayton was drawn into the ... offense by the promise of easy money,” the prosecution wrote in a memo to the court. “He now needs to learn that earning ‘easy money’ by trafficking in machine guns will not be treated leniently.”
The defense requested in its own presentence filing that Drayton be given a prison term of 1 to 1½ years.
Drayton’s attorney, Robert Lengeling, portrayed to the court that his client was naive and had a “juvenile understanding about the inherent danger or potential for violence in what he was doing. ... He thought of these items as really cool tools in a similar manner to buying a new power tool.”
Court records show that Drayton has gross-misdemeanor convictions for carrying a loaded gun in public without a permit while driving in Edina and damage to property in connection with ramming another vehicle during a road rage incident in Minneapolis.
Codefendants Rafael C. Wesley, 20, of Brooklyn Center and Kyrees D. Johnson, 23, of Minneapolis pleaded guilty earlier this year to unlawful possession of machine guns. Sentencings are scheduled for Johnson on May 30 and for Wesley on June 20.
An investigator with the Central Minnesota Violent Offender Task Force notified the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) in March 2023 of a Snapchat group called “BLICCS&STICCS3″ that was suspected of helping to traffic machine guns, other firearms and illicit drugs in the Twin Cities “and outlying areas.”
The investigator shared screenshots and videos of several people selling, promoting and operating machine gun conversion devices. With the help of a confidential informant, one law enforcement officer gained access to the group and began monitoring it while undercover.
After the officer posted a photo of a prop firearm to the group, claiming he recently bought the gun, Wesley asked the officer whether he wanted to trade the gun for a switch.
The officer continued conversations with Wesley on Snapchat about potentially buying switches. Wesley said they would cost $700 for two or $900 for three. The officer agreed to buy three and said he would pay an extra $100 if Wesley would deliver them in St. Cloud — which he did the next day.
Soon afterward, the officer agreed to meet Wesley in St. Paul to buy two Glock switches and a drop-in machine gun conversion device designed for an AR-style rifle. Johnson was there during those transactions as well.
Undercover officers later met with Wesley in Minneapolis to buy an unserialized Glock 17 for $700. Wesley also agreed to install a previously purchased switch on the newly bought gun. Between March and June 2023, undercover officers carried out about six controlled buys with multiple members of the Snapchat group.
Wesley also arranged for undercover officers to meet with Drayton to buy a 3-D-printed drop-in machine gun conversion device for an AR-style rifle for $550. During the transaction, Drayton showed the undercover officers a video on his phone of Drayton shooting a gun with the drop-in device inserted.
Drayton commented to the officers that the drop-in made the firearm shoot “way too [expletive] fast.”
On May 11, an undercover officer arranged to meet with Drayton in Eagan to buy two drop-in devices for $800. However, when Drayton arrived, he only had one and sold it to the officer for $400. On June 9, undercover officers again met with Drayton and bought a Glock pistol and a switch for $1,300.
Star Tribune staff writer Stephen Montemayor contributed to this story.
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