PITTSBURGH, PA – A resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to eight months’ imprisonment followed by a term of three years’ supervised release on his conviction of violating federal narcotic laws, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
United States District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan imposed the sentence on Damon Tam Wheat-Avery also known as Damon Tamar Wheat-Avery, age 19, formerly of the Swissvale area.
According to information presented to the court, on May 27, 2021, the Allegheny County Police Department’s Narcotics Unit was conducting a violent suppression detail in the Rankin area, when they pulled over a vehicle occupied by Wheat-Avery and others. Detectives noticed a firearm that had been sitting at Wheat-Avery’s feet, and a later search of the vehicle led to the seizure of another firearm and a substantial quantity of fentanyl. During his guilty plea hearing, Wheat-Avery admitted that the fentanyl was his and that he intended to distribute it, and he further admitted that he possessed the firearm for his protection.
Assistant United States Attorney Brendan T. Conway prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Chung commended the Allegheny County Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Wheat-Avery.