SYRACUSE, NY – Maurice Owens, 22, is headed to federal prison for over eleven years after pleading guilty to trafficking fentanyl and running from cops with an untraceable firearm. U.S. Attorney Carla B. Freedman announced the sentencing today, marking a win for the ATF and Syracuse Police, but doing little to stem the tide of fentanyl flooding the streets.
According to court documents, Owens sold fentanyl to an unnamed customer on two occasions in December 2020. Just days later, on December 10th, he spotted law enforcement near a known drug-selling location. Instead of cooperating, Owens bolted, clutching a fully loaded “ghost gun” – a privately made firearm without a serial number, making it virtually untraceable. He also had three glassine envelopes of fentanyl on his person at the time, and was already prohibited from possessing firearms due to a prior felony conviction.
The arrest didn’t stop the dealing. While locked up in a local jail between December 2020 and February 2021, Owens allegedly continued to orchestrate fentanyl and heroin sales from behind bars, directing associates to supply his customers. He profited from these continued transactions, raking in cash while incarcerated. Investigators estimate Owens and his crew moved at least 81 grams of fentanyl during this period.
U.S. District Judge Glenn T. Suddaby handed down the 138-month sentence, along with a four-year term of supervised release following his imprisonment. The judge also ordered Owens to forfeit $6,200, representing the proceeds from his drug trafficking operation. While the feds tout this as a victory, the sheer volume of fentanyl still hitting the streets suggests the problem is far from solved.
The case was a joint effort between the ATF’s New York Field Division and the Syracuse Police Department’s Criminal Intelligence Section. Prosecutors Thomas Sutcliffe and Andrew Beaty framed the case within the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods,” a broad initiative aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence. But critics argue PSN is more rhetoric than results, failing to address the root causes driving drug trafficking and gun violence in communities like Syracuse.
Owens’ sentence sends a message, but whether that message will deter others remains to be seen. The proliferation of untraceable “ghost guns” and the relentless demand for cheap, deadly fentanyl continue to pose a significant challenge to law enforcement. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this case and report on the ongoing struggle against the opioid crisis in Syracuse and beyond.
Related Federal Cases
- Khyle Williams Faces 176 Gun Trafficking Charges, New York NY, 2023 · New York
- US Justice Department, Drug and Arms Trafficking, Washington D.C., … · New York
- James Fights to Uphold Gun Shipping Ban Amidst DOJ Retreat · New York
- Lawrence Destefano, Illicit Ghost Gun Shipping, New York NY, 2024 · Kansas
- Donnell Hogan Fatally Shot by Police, Syracuse NY, 2025 · New York
Key Facts
- Agency: ATF
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Weapons|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Press Release
Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free
Browse More
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News