Date: 07-12-2024

Case Style:

United States of America v. Andre Donnell Downey

Case Number: 5:23-CR-00116

Judge:

Court: The United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina (Wake County)

Plaintiff's Attorney: The United States Attorney’s Office for Raleigh

Defendant's Attorney:

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Description:

Raleigh, North Carolina criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with Armed Rocky Mount Narcotics Trafficker
Armed Rocky Mount Narcotics Trafficker Who Fired Shots Sentenced to 50 Years

In 2021, Downey was identified by investigators as a high-volume cocaine supplier to lower-level dealers in the Rocky Mount area. During the investigation, law enforcement officers observed Downey’s operation of multiple stash houses which he used to distribute cocaine. In December 2021, a search of one house uncovered cocaine, marijuana, and other drug paraphernalia along with nearly $3,000 cash on Downey’s person. By the spring of 2022, investigators began receiving information indicating that Downey had resumed selling drugs out of a stash house on Buena Vista Drive in Rocky Mount. On July 22, 2022, Rocky Mount Police Officers responded to an emergency call at a local convenience store. Downey was seen on the convenience store’s surveillance camera discharging a firearm through the front door of the store at an individual in the parking lot. Officers later collected a 9mm handgun from Downey that matched 9mm shell casings recovered from the scene of the shooting.

Through traffic stops, search warrants, and interviews of individuals who were supplied by Downey, investigators were able to establish that he was responsible for distributing over 60,000 grams of cocaine and 765 grams of crack from 2021 until Downey’s federal arrest in September 2023. After Downey’s federal arrest, he made more than 600 calls from jail within his first month of being in custody. A review of the calls by the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) task force officers found that Downey was discussing the restart of his drug activity following his release and managing his drug trafficking organization’s continued drug sales while in custody. The calls also revealed that Downey was orchestrating the use of violence against other drug traffickers that owed him money.

Downey has a 2009 federal conviction for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of cocaine base (crack). He served a 70-month sentence for that crime as well as an additional nine months for violating his supervised release.

The prosecution of Downey was a part of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force Operation (OCDETF). OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launders, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Rocky Mount Police Department, ATF, and the Nash County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Caroline Webb prosecuted the case.

Outcome:

Defendant was found guilty and sentenced to

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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