Melvin Johnson, 27, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 66 months in federal prison for trafficking crack cocaine and illegally possessing firearms while on pre-trial release. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, with support from FBI Special Agent in Charge Reid Davis of the Washington Field Office Criminal Division and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Johnson pleaded guilty on April 8, 2025, to unlawful possession with intent to distribute cocaine base and being a felon in possession of two firearms and ammunition. U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Leon also ordered Johnson to serve three years of supervised release.
According to court documents, MPD officers responded on August 17, 2021, to the 3500 block of 14th Street NW after receiving a report about drug trafficking. Officers encountered Johnson nearby on a scooter and questioned him about illegal items in his possession. An officer observed an extended magazine protruding from Johnson’s bag and noticed it was weighed down by another heavy object.
After detaining Johnson, officers found a loaded Glock 29 semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine containing 27 rounds of 9mm ammunition inside his bag. Another Glock magazine loaded with 16 rounds was also recovered. During a search, police found $1,203 in cash and 26 grams of what field-tested positive as cocaine base inside Johnson’s spandex pants.
Previously, on February 28, 2020, MPD officers had recovered a loaded “ghost gun” equipped with a laser pointer from Johnson on Meridian Place NW. At the time he was arrested for drug trafficking and possession of the Glock pistol in August 2021, Johnson was already on pre-trial release for carrying a loaded pistol without a license.
The case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office and MPD and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emory V. Cole.
“Melvin Johnson, 27, a previously convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to a total of 66 months in federal prison in connection with trafficking crack cocaine and illegally possessing a loaded Glock semi-automatic pistol and a “Ghost Gun” semi-automatic pistol equipped with a laser pointer,” announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
