MEMPHIS, TN – Devin Baker, 31, a career criminal with a rap sheet stretching back years, admitted today to peddling methamphetamine and illegally possessing firearms. The guilty plea, announced by U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant, closes a case rooted in a fatal overdose and a brazen drug operation run out of a local motel.
The investigation began on June 4, 2019, after Memphis Police responded to a Shelby Oaks Drive address where K.P. had succumbed to a drug overdose – a lethal combination of heroin and methamphetamine. Narcan proved ineffective, and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene. This tragedy sparked a focused investigation that quickly led detectives to Baker.
From June 5th to 11th, undercover detectives meticulously documented Baker’s activities, observing multiple hand-to-hand drug transactions conducted directly from a room at a Memphis motel. A subsequent search of Baker and the motel room on June 11th yielded a disturbing cache: methamphetamine, marijuana, 22 pills, digital scales, and several firearms, including one confirmed stolen weapon. Evidence also suggested Baker was using the motel room as his primary residence.
After waiving his Miranda rights, Baker confessed to lodging at the motel, confirmed the presence of the guns, and admitted to selling drugs from the room. This wasn’t Baker’s first rodeo with the law. His extensive criminal history includes convictions for aggravated kidnapping, aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary, marijuana distribution, and prior firearm offenses – all of which rendered him legally prohibited from possessing weapons or ammunition.
Baker pled guilty on August 26, 2020, before U.S. District Court Judge John T. Fowlkes Jr. Sentencing is scheduled for December 2, 2020. He now faces a potential 20-year sentence for methamphetamine distribution, compounded by a mandatory minimum of five years – and potentially a life sentence – for the firearm charge. There is no chance for parole in the federal system.
“This defendant’s prior conviction history demonstrates his disrespect for the law and his imminent danger to the public,” stated U.S. Attorney Dunavant. “Baker presented a triple threat: a violent, convicted felon with multiple firearms, distributing deadly substances. Career offender + guns + drugs = a federal conviction that will remove him from our community and save lives.” The case was investigated by the Memphis Police Department’s Heroin Overdose Response Team (HORT) and Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel D. Winnig is prosecuting the case, assigned from the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office.
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Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Weapons
- Source: Official Source ↗
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