A convicted felon who orchestrated a fake armed robbery in Fort Pierce with a loaded Glock 26 has been sentenced to five years in federal prison. Terry Burney Delion, 34, of Ft. Pierce, Florida, admitted to wielding the 9mm semi-automatic pistol during the August 29, 2019, incident — a sham designed to help non-citizens gain U.S. immigration status as crime victims.
That night, police responded to a 911 call reporting a violent robbery behind a Fort Pierce grocery store. The alleged victims claimed they were ambushed by a masked gunman in dark clothing while taking out trash. But investigators quickly uncovered the truth: the crime was staged. Less than a mile from the scene, cops found a discarded sweatshirt, ski mask, and a loaded Glock 26 with an extended magazine. A K-9 unit traced the scent from the clothing to a nearby dollar store parking lot, where Delion was arrested on the spot.
DNA evidence pulled from the sweatshirt and ski mask matched Delion’s profile. He later confessed to law enforcement that he possessed the firearm and agreed to stage the robbery at the request of the wife of one of the alleged victims. The scheme? To manufacture a false victim narrative allowing the non-citizens involved to petition for legal status in the United States. Delion admitted he was paid for his role in the deception.
The defendant is no stranger to federal prison. Delion has prior felony convictions out of the Southern District of Florida for bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence — both from 2010. These convictions barred him from legally possessing any firearm, making his actions on August 29, 2019, a clear violation of federal law.
U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida and Christopher Robinson, Acting Special Agent in Charge of ATF’s Miami Field Division, announced the sentencing handed down by U.S. District Judge Donald L. Graham. The case was investigated by ATF Miami’s Port St. Lucie Office with support from the Fort Pierce Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Porter.
The case was part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a nationwide initiative reinvigorated in 2017 to combat violent crime through coordinated federal, state, and local law enforcement action. Court records, including case number 20-cr-14028, are available via the Southern District of Florida’s public docket at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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