Fall River Man Sentenced to Five Years for Selling Cocaine and Firearms
Carlos Perez, 40, was sentenced to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to drug and firearm charges.
2 reports on this incident · first at Sep 1, 2026, 3:33 p.m. ET
This case is not concluded. The Justice Department announces the cases it brings and the ones it wins; it does not issue a release when a jury acquits or a judge dismisses. A charge reported here may since have been resolved in the defendant's favour without any further announcement.
We last searched for new coverage of this at Sep 1, 2026, 5:09 p.m. ET — checked 42 min ago.
Earlier reports
Sep 1, 2026, 3:33 p.m. ETFirst report
Norfolk Man Sentenced to 31 Years for Drug Trafficking and Firearms Charges
NORFOLK, Va. – Jamar Edward Gay, 37, of Norfolk, was sentenced to 31 years in prison on Sept. 1, 2026, following his conviction at trial for maintaining a drug-involved premises to distribute cocaine, fentanyl, marijuana, and suboxone; possessing a machinegun in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes; being a felon in possession of a firearm; and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, on Dec. 18, 2025, law enforcement searched Gay's residence in Norfolk. Investigators found a container with crack cocaine, powder cocaine, fentanyl, and suboxone strips in the kitchen, and in the bedroom a handgun equipped with a machinegun conversion device (MCD), rendering the firearm capable of automatic fire. They also recovered two other MCDs, marijuana, and Gay's driver's license, debit card, and U.S. Marine Corps identification. Another firearm was found in the living room. Gay has previous convictions for unlawful wounding in March 2018 and malicious wounding in August 2022. As a previously convicted felon, Gay cannot legally possess firearms or ammunition.
The announcement was made by Theophani K. Stamos, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Anthony A. Spotswood, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; and Dominique Evans, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Norfolk Field Office, after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth W. Hanes. The Chesapeake Police Department and the Norfolk Police Department assisted in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph E. DePadilla and Luke Bresnahan prosecuted the case.
The case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad.
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Revision history
- Version 11 Sept 2026, 19:33current
First published.
- Version 11 Sept 2026, 20:52current
First published.
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