Frederick Jermaine Porter, Felon in Possession of Firearm, SC 2024

Frederick Jermaine Porter, 27, of Spartanburg, pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm — a charge that could land him behind bars for up to 10 years. The plea, entered before U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Cain in Anderson, comes after a targeted takedown under the federal crackdown initiative known as ‘Operation REAL-TIME.’

On September 15, 2016, Spartanburg Police Department investigators moved in on Porter based on a credible tip: he was walking the streets with a loaded .38 caliber revolver stashed in a book bag. When officers approached, they found a marijuana cigarette near his feet and placed him under arrest. A search of the bag turned up the firearm, fully loaded and ready to fire — a dangerous combination for a man legally barred from owning any weapon.

Porter, a previously convicted felon, has been in federal custody since his arrest on September 19, 2016. His case was fast-tracked under ‘Operation REAL-TIME,’ a joint federal-state task force designed to identify and prosecute violent offenders who illegally carry firearms in the Upstate region. Since its launch in August 2015, the initiative has led to the federal prosecution of around 90 defendants and the seizure of approximately 110 firearms from prohibited individuals.

The operation is fueled by a network of law enforcement heavyweights: the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, DEA, Department of Homeland Security, South Carolina Highway Patrol, and multiple local prosecutor offices. Greenville County Sheriff Will Lewis called the collaboration essential: ‘We are committed to removing illegal weapons from violent offenders and are very glad to be a part of this program.’

U.S. Attorney Beth Drake, who oversaw the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina, praised the seamless coordination between agencies. ‘We work best when we work together,’ Drake said. ‘This ‘real time’ identification of high risk offenders is smart policing, and we welcome the opportunity to work alongside our state chiefs and sheriffs in taking violent repeat offenders out of our communities.’

The investigation was conducted by the Spartanburg Police Department and ATF agents. Assistant U.S. Attorney Max Cauthen is prosecuting the case in the Greenville U.S. Attorney’s Office. Sentencing for Frederick Jermaine Porter will be scheduled after the U.S. Probation Office completes its presentence report.