Ocala, Florida – Senior United States District Judge John Antoon II has found Michael Tyrone Young (32, Ocala) guilty of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Young faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for December 15, 2022. Young had been indicted on December 7, 2021.
According to the evidence presented during the bench trial, on the night of August 31, 2021, officers from the Ocala Police Department encountered Young in the hallway of a building at a local public housing complex. The officers were patrolling the area because of recent shootings at the complex. The officers confronted Young after seeing him drop and retrieve what appeared to be a weapon. As they spoke with him, the loaded firearm fell out of Young’s pants and onto the floor. Young admitted that he had the firearm because he had been “looking for a certain person” who was “fixin’ to get him.” A records check showed that Young had three state felony convictions for drug distribution. As a convicted felon, Young is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
The case was investigated by the City of Ocala Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.