Jaquan Raqueze Harris, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, North Carolina 2021

State: North Carolina
Category: Violent Crime
Source: <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-ednc/pr/rocky-mount-man-pleads-guilty-federal-firearm-charges-after-shooting-multiple-homes-and" style="color:#cc0000;" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">DOJ Press Release ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Â Ã¢â‚¬â€

A 27-year-old Rocky Mount man is facing up to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.

Jaquan Raqueze Harris, a convicted felon, pleaded guilty to the charge on [no date mentioned] in the Eastern District of North Carolina.

According to court documents, on May 19, 2021, Harris shot indiscriminately into multiple homes along Parkridge Road and Walbrook Court in Rocky Mount. Witnesses reported hearing between 20 and 30 gunshots in rapid succession late at night, with multiple residents having projectiles strike and enter their homes and vehicles.

Officers recovered over 25 spent shell casings and a semi-automatic rifle at the crime scene. Surveillance footage from a resident’s home security system captured Harris behind the home and armed with a black-in-color semi-automatic rifle. Harris is observed yelling and firing his rifle indiscriminately before fleeing the scene on foot and discarding the rifle.

Rocky Mount Police arrested Harris the next day. Ballistics testing confirmed the spent shell casings from the crime scene matched the rifle Harris left at the crime scene.

Harris is from Rocky Mount, North Carolina, and was a convicted felon at the time, prohibited from possessing firearms.

The conviction is a result of the ongoing Violent Crime Action Plan (VCAP) initiative, a collaborative effort with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, working with the community, to identify and address the most significant drivers of violent crime.

Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement after U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert B. Jones, Jr. accepted the plea. The Rocky Mount Police Department, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Aakash Singh prosecuting the case.