Temple Hills Felon Pleads Guilty To Illegal Possession Of A Firearm And Ammunition

Greenbelt, Maryland – Today, Damante Christian Dozier, age 26, of Temple Hills, Maryland pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

The guilty plea was announced by Erek L. Barron, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland; Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); Chief Demetrious Harris of the City of Seat Pleasant Police Department, and Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department.

According to his guilty plea, on June 6, 2023, an officer with the Seat Pleasant Police Department who suspected that Dozier had shoplifted from a retail store in Oxon Hill, Maryland, approached Dozier and observed the shape of a firearm in Dozier’s pants.  The officer frisked Dozier’s waistband area and felt a solid rectangular mass consistent with the shape of a firearm.  Following the frisk, and after requesting backup, the officer asked Dozier to turn around to be handcuffed, and Dozier attempted to flee.  A few seconds later, law enforcement officers from the Seat Pleasant Police Department and the Prince George’s County Police Department gained control of Dozier and retrieved a firearm with an extended magazine from his pants.  The recovered firearm was a black Glock 45 .9mm semi-automatic pistol loaded with one round of ammunition in the chamber and 33 rounds in an extended magazine.  Dozier knew that he had a previous felony conviction which prohibited him from possessing a firearm and ammunition. 

U.S. Attorney Barron commended the ATF, the City of Seat Pleasant Police Department, and the Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron also thanked Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Gustavo Ruiz and Assistant United States Attorney Kelly O. Hayes, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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