GRAND RAPIDS – A 26-year-old Battle Creek man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for possessing over four kilograms of methamphetamine and selling machineguns.
Travon Deshaun-Roderick Mansker, 26, was sentenced in the Western District of Michigan after a search of his Battle Creek residence uncovered the massive methamphetamine haul and 14 firearms, including two machineguns.
The methamphetamine, valued at over $1 million, was found in orange powder form and was intended to be pressed into pills and sold to others, according to investigators. Mansker had previously sold pills that appeared to be the commercial drug Adderall during the investigation.
Of the 14 firearms seized, two had been modified to meet the federal definition of machineguns, while five were “privately made firearms” or “ghost guns” designed to be untraceable to law enforcement. Investigators also found evidence that Mansker had sold four machinegun conversion devices in March and April 2023.
“We choose our cases carefully, focusing the longer sentences we often secure on those who pose the greatest threat,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “Travon Mansker is one of those people. He was a large-scale pill dealer selling methamphetamine masked as Adderall. And he was trafficking illegal firearms calibrated to cause maximum harm.”
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Battle Creek Police Department (BCPD), with additional support by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Vito S. Solitro prosecuted the case.
“Removing violent offenders from our communities is ATF’s highest priority,” said ATF Detroit Field Division Special Agent in Charge James Deir. “Mansker sold poison in our community while armed with illegally modified firearms. This sentence should serve as a clear message to all armed drug traffickers in the state of Michigan, if you’re packing a firearm illegally while peddling your poison, pack your bags for prison.”
Orville O. Greene, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, added, “Mr. Mansker’s time as a peddler of poison in west Michigan has come to an end. His sentence clearly demonstrates our collective resolve to safeguard our communities from the threats of drugs and firearms.”
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Key Facts
- State: Michigan
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|Weapons
- Source: Official Source ↗
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