Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KENNETH JOYNER, 33, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty today in Bridgeport federal court to firearm and drug offenses.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 25, 2022, Bridgeport Police stopped Joyner’s car for motor vehicle violations. Joyner was arrested after he was found in possession of a loaded Polymer P80 9mm semi-automatic pistol (“ghost gun”) and several bags of marijuana that he intended to sell. A subsequent search of Joyner’s residence revealed a loaded Ruger P95 9mm semi-automatic pistol with an obliterated serial number, marijuana that Joyner intended to sell, and drug paraphernalia.
Joyner pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm with obliterated serial number, and possession with intent to distribute marijuana. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford on February 22, 2024, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
Joyner has been detained since his federal arrest on April 13, 2023.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and the Bridgeport Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ross Weingarten and Karen L. Peck through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.