Jeramya Sloan, Firearms Trafficking, New York 2022

CENTRAL ISLIP, NY – Jeramya Sloan, 32, known on the streets as “JuJu,” is headed to federal prison for 46 months after admitting to running guns on Long Island. Sloan, of Selden, NY, pleaded guilty in June 2022 to firearms trafficking, a charge stemming from a year-long operation supplying weapons to a known Bloods gang member.

Federal prosecutors detailed how Sloan, between December 2019 and January 2021, peddled eight firearms throughout Suffolk County. The arsenal included a mix of commercially manufactured weapons and increasingly dangerous, untraceable “ghost guns” – privately made firearms without serial numbers. Among the weapons sold: a .45 caliber Ruger, a .22 caliber Smith & Wesson, and three Polymer80-style 9mm “ghost guns” and a .45 caliber Polymer80 “ghost gun,” one of which was loaded. A fourth firearm, a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson, had its serial number deliberately obliterated, hindering any legitimate tracing efforts.

U.S. Attorney Breon Peace minced no words, stating the sentence “reflects the efforts of this Office, together with our law enforcement partners, to reduce gun violence in our district.” He emphasized the danger posed by ghost guns, calling them a “threat to public safety” and asserting that each weapon sold by Sloan “potentially prevented death or serious injury.” The Ruger pistol was originally purchased in 2005 in South Carolina, while the Smith & Wesson revolver traced back to a 2012 purchase in Oneonta, New York. The remaining firearms, including the ghost guns, were untraceable.

The ATF, along with the Suffolk County Police Department and the United States Postal Inspection Service, conducted the investigation that brought Sloan down. Agents recovered ammunition from Sloan’s residence during his arrest on November 9, 2021. While authorities haven’t publicly linked these firearms to specific crimes, the proliferation of untraceable weapons like the ones Sloan sold is a growing concern for law enforcement nationwide.

This case is part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a broad initiative aiming to reduce violent crime through collaboration between federal, state, and local agencies. The Eastern District of New York is currently working with a coalition of agencies – including the NYPD, FBI, DHS/HSI, and DEA – to implement PSN strategies across the region. The goal is simple: get guns out of the hands of criminals and make streets safer.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Justina L. Geraci of the Long Island Criminal Division handled the prosecution. The 46-month sentence sends a message, though whether it’s enough to stem the tide of illegal firearms flooding the streets of Long Island remains to be seen. Sloan’s case highlights the ongoing battle against both traditional gun trafficking and the increasingly complex threat of untraceable ghost guns.

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