Ladarius Jaleel Snipes, Violent Robbery, Minnesota 2021

ST. PAUL, MN – Ladarius Jaleel Snipes, 27, of Mississippi, is facing over 12 years behind bars after being sentenced to 155 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release. Snipes was convicted on multiple charges stemming from a string of violent crimes across multiple states, culminating in a brutal home invasion in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The sentencing, handed down yesterday by Judge Donovan W. Frank, follows a complex investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), alongside multiple state and local agencies. Court documents reveal Snipes, along with co-conspirators Kendarrius Keshaun Willard, 27, and Anna Trameri Novacheck, 28, engaged in a straw purchasing scheme to illegally obtain firearms. On November 1, 2021, the trio went to a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL), where Novacheck falsely claimed to be the actual buyer of an Alex Pro model Econo 5.56 caliber semiautomatic pistol, at the direction of Snipes and Willard. Willard, already a convicted felon, is prohibited from owning firearms.

The illegal firearm acquisition was just the prelude to a wave of violence. On January 5, 2022, Snipes burglarized a home in St. Paul. A doorbell camera captured the brazen act: Snipes smashing a window and entering the residence. Inside, he didn’t just steal an Aero Precision model X15 multi-caliber semiautomatic pistol; he callously used a firearm acquired through the straw purchase to kill the homeowner’s golden retriever. The image of Snipes, photographed holding the stolen weapon with a large-capacity magazine, paints a chilling portrait of a man with a blatant disregard for life.

But the St. Paul burglary wasn’t an isolated incident. Months earlier, on August 7, 2021, Snipes robbed a restaurant in Cleveland, Mississippi, brandishing a semiautomatic pistol and demanding cash. When an employee attempted to flee, Snipes fired the weapon to instill fear. This act led to charges in the Northern District of Mississippi for Hobbs Act robbery and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence.

Snipes ultimately pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting false statement during the purchase of a firearm, possession of a stolen firearm, Hobbs Act Robbery, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence on August 31, 2023. His accomplices have also faced justice: Willard received a 90-month prison sentence and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting false statement on May 30, 2023. Novacheck received three years of probation after pleading guilty to conspiracy to make false statements on June 7, 2023.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Calhoun-Lopez (District of Minnesota) and Robert Mims (Northern District of Mississippi) spearheaded the prosecution. The case serves as a stark reminder of the devastating consequences of illegal firearm trafficking and violent crime, and the relentless efforts of law enforcement to bring perpetrators like Ladarius Snipes to justice. The investigation involved the St. Paul Police Department, the Department of Homeland Security, the Minnesota State Patrol, and the Cleveland (Mississippi) Police Department.

MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS

Weapons

Billy Glyn Sims Jr., Unlawful Gun Dealing, California 2023

May 9, 2024

Weapons

Moeshea Isiah Hart, Machine Gun Possession, Minnesota 2023

Apr 8, 2026

Weapons

Frankie D. McNeal, Discharging Firearm at Vehicle, West Virginia 2019

Aug 6, 2020

Weapons

Quintae L. Stubbs, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, West Virginia 2022

Dec 12, 2022