PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Tavaris East, 42, of Pensacola, Florida, pled guilty to making a false statement to a federally licensed firearms dealer when purchasing a firearm. The plea was announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
On April 27, 2022, East purchased a firearm from a federally licensed firearms dealer and checked the box “yes” that he was “the actual transferee/buyer of the firearm” on the ATF Form 4473. However, East purchased the firearm for Kennon Farrow, a convicted felon. The firearm was recovered by law enforcement on May 24, 2022, after it was used by Kennon Farrow to commit a homicide.
Sentencing in this case is set for March 30, 2023, at 9:00 a.m., at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola before the Honorable United States District Judge T. Kent Wetherell II. East faces 10 years in prison.
The case resulted from an investigation by the Pensacola Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp.
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.
As part of its PSN strategy, the United States Attorney’s Office is encouraging everyone to lock their car doors, particularly at night. Burglaries from unlocked automobiles are a significant source of guns for criminals in the Northern District of Florida. Please do your part and protect yourself by locking your car doors.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.