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Washington, D.C. – Derrick Thomas Martin, 33, is facing serious time after a federal jury found him guilty on four counts related to a brazen attempt to ditch evidence during a police raid. Martin, a convicted felon with a long rap sheet, chucked a backpack packed with a loaded handgun and enough narcotics to kill a city before cops could even get inside his apartment.
The bust went down November 25th, 2024, at an apartment on Pennsylvania Avenue SE. Metro PD’s Criminal Apprehension Unit was there to serve an outstanding warrant from Maryland – Martin had skipped out on a trial for, ironically, illegal gun and drug charges.
According to trial evidence, as officers approached, Martin opened a window and heaved the backpack onto the street. Inside, they found a Century Arms Micro Draco pistol – a compact version of the AK-47 – roughly 700 grams of cocaine, and over 5,700 fentanyl pills. The situation was particularly grim, according to U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, as a child was sleeping nearby.
Martin wasn’t going down easy. He struggled with officers when they entered the apartment. The jury needed less than a day to convict him on charges of possessing fentanyl and cocaine with intent to distribute (quantities exceeding 100 grams and 500 grams respectively), being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possessing a firearm during drug trafficking. Pirro described Martin as a “career criminal” with 31 prior arrests and a “clear danger” to the community.
Martin is scheduled to be sentenced July 10, 2026, before Judge Trevor N. McFadden. He’s looking at a minimum of 15 years behind bars.