SAN ANTONIO – On Friday, a federal jury convicted Kenton Maurice Haynes, 27, of San Antonio for his role in drug trafficking.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on March 26, 2020, law enforcement officers observed Haynes and Kevin Johnson, Jr., 29, of San Antonio, driving a car in circles in an empty parking lot, parking, and then repositioning several times. Another car pulled up, and the driver exited his vehicle and got into the backseat of Johnson’s car. Officers then executed an arrest of all three of the individuals for a drug transaction that was in progress. At the time of the arrest, Johnson had a loaded handgun and nearly $10,000 in cash. Haynes had a loaded handgun equipped with a high-capacity magazine and approximately $2,700 in cash. Officers also recovered approximately two and a half pounds of marijuana, ecstasy and cocaine during the arrest.
At the time of the arrest, Haynes, who was a documented member of the Bloods and Neighborhood Piru street gangs, was under felony indictment for state offenses. Haynes was also wanted for multiple felony warrants for narcotics and firearms offenses.
At the conclusion of a four-day jury trial, Haynes was found guilty on all three charges alleged: one count of Receipt of Firearm While Under Indictment; one count of Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime; and one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana. Haynes is scheduled for sentencing before United States Senior District Judge David A. Ezra on August 8, 2022. He faces a maximum of five years in prison for both his receipt of a firearm while under indictment and his possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. Haynes also faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime to be served consecutively with any other sentence imposed.
On March 16, 2022, Haynes’ co-defendant, Kevin Johnson, Jr., pleaded guilty before United States Magistrate Judge Henry J. Bemporad to one count of Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime and one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana. Johnson is scheduled for sentencing before Judge Ezra on July 25, 2022. He faces a maximum of five years in prison for possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance with a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime to be served consecutively with any other sentence imposed.
U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff of the Western District of Texas and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge Fred J. Milanowski made the announcement.
The ATF, along with members of San Antonio Texas Anti-Gang Center (TAG), is investigating the case.
The public is encouraged to report San Antonio area gang-related crime to TAG’s intervention and prevention website at stopsanantoniogangs.org.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey and William F. Calve are prosecuting the case.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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