Ravone Robert Deberry, Crack Trafficking and Gun Violence, Pennsylvania 2023

Ravone Robert Deberry, 26, of Erie, Pennsylvania, admitted in federal court to trafficking crack cocaine and firing a loaded 9mm handgun at rival gang members — acts tied to his role in the violent local gang known as “1800.” Deberry pleaded guilty to two federal counts: conspiracy to distribute crack and illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

The charges stem from a targeted investigation by the FBI’s Erie Area Gang Law Enforcement (EAGLE) Safe Streets task force, which uncovered a network of drug sales and retaliatory violence. Wiretaps authorized by the court captured Deberry negotiating drug deals and later boasting about opening fire on enemies. The intercepts provided damning evidence of both distribution and the use of a Smith & Wesson, model SW9F, 9mm handgun in the assault.

Deberry admitted to working with co-defendants to distribute crack across Erie, using coded language and street-level runners to push the drug. The operation was not low-level: court documents reveal systematic trafficking that fed addiction and fueled gang tensions. His role escalated beyond sales when he discharged the firearm during a confrontation, an act recorded in real time through electronic surveillance.

As a convicted felon, Deberry was legally barred from possessing any firearm. Yet the weapon used in the shooting was not only loaded, but actively deployed in a crime of violence. Prosecutors emphasized the danger posed by armed gang members operating with impunity, calling the incident a textbook example of the cycle of retaliation plaguing urban neighborhoods.

Sentencing is scheduled for November 4, 2019, at 12:45 p.m. before U.S. District Judge David S. Cercone. Deberry faces up to 40 years in prison and a fine of $5,250,000, or both. Under federal sentencing guidelines, the final term will reflect the severity of the offenses and Deberry’s criminal history.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Marshall J. Piccinini. The EAGLE task force — a joint effort between the FBI, Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, Bureau of Narcotics Investigation, and Erie Police Department — led the investigation that dismantled this segment of the 1800 gang’s operations.

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