ST. PAUL, MN – Travon Lavelle Blackman, 26, of Robbinsdale, is facing a decade in federal prison after being sentenced for illegally possessing a firearm – a Glock .45-caliber pistol modified to function as a fully automatic weapon. The sentence, handed down February 24, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Wilhelmina M. Wright, comes on top of a previous 70-month sentence Blackman actively evaded.
The case began to unravel December 15, 2021, when Judge Wright initially sentenced Blackman to 70 months for a prior felon in possession conviction. Instead of reporting to prison, Blackman vanished, prompting the issuance of a federal warrant for his arrest. Investigators didn’t have to look far; they found him holed up in a Robbinsdale apartment on April 5, 2022.
A search of the apartment yielded more than just Blackman. Police discovered a stolen Glock, model 21 Gen 4, with a high-capacity magazine loaded with 18 rounds. But the weapon wasn’t just loaded – it had been illegally modified with an auto-sear, commonly called a “switch,” turning it into a fully automatic firearm. Investigators noted the slide lock had been deliberately glued in place, a crude attempt to maintain the modification. The pistol had been reported stolen out of Eden Prairie back in May 2019, and Blackman’s fingerprints were all over it.
As a convicted felon, Blackman is legally prohibited from possessing any firearms or ammunition. This wasn’t his first offense, and the court clearly took his repeated disregard for the law seriously. On August 29, 2022, Blackman pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a firearm as a felon. Judge Wright didn’t hesitate to stack the new 120-month sentence consecutively to the 70 months he’d previously been sentenced to, effectively adding another 10 years to his time behind bars.
The investigation was a joint effort by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Minneapolis Police Department, and the Robbinsdale Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Bejar prosecuted the case, securing the conviction and lengthy sentence. The ATF’s St. Paul Field Division led the federal effort. This case serves as a stark reminder that repeat offenders, especially those dealing with illegal firearms, will face the full weight of federal law.
Blackman will also face three years of supervised release after completing his 190-month prison term. The stolen weapon will be forfeited to the United States government. The investigation remains ongoing to determine if Blackman was involved in any other criminal activity.
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- Miklos Terrel DATES Jr., Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Minnesota · Minnesota
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