A Mesquite, Texas man, Devonte Okeith Mathis, pleaded guilty this week to Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Marijuana, and Using and Carrying a Firearm During and In Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime.
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According to the Department of Justice, on October 4, 2021, Mathis, age 24, and his co-conspirator were traveling together aboard an Amtrak train in Tucson, Arizona, when his co-conspirator shot and killed Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent Michael Garbo aboard the train. His co-conspirator also shot and injured a second DEA Special Agent and a DEA Task Force Officer. The co-conspirator died on the scene. Mathis admitted, in pleading guilty, that he knew that his co-conspirator possessed two handguns. He also admitted that it was reasonably foreseeable that his co-conspirator would possess the firearms in furtherance of their drug trafficking conspiracy, and that he would carry and use the two handguns during and in relation to their drug trafficking conspiracy.
A conviction for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Marijuana carries a maximum penalty of a term of imprisonment of up to five years, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. A conviction for Using and Carrying a Firearm During and In Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years, to run consecutive to all other counts, a fine of up to $250,000, or both.
Mathis’ sentencing is scheduled for May 24, 2023, before United States District Judge Rosemary Márquez.