Baltimore man pleads guilty to federal drug and gun charges tied to trafficking probe

BALTIMORE (WBFF) — A 35-year-old Baltimore man pleaded guilty in federal court to drug trafficking and firearm charges in connection with a local drug trafficking investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland announced Wednesday.

Davon Taylor, 35, also agreed this offense violated the conditions of his federal supervised release.

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Taylor is charged with possession with the intent to distribute controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, according to officials.

Law enforcement caught the defendant with cocaine that they say he intended to distribute along with a stolen firearm. At the time, Taylor was on federal supervised release for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.

On April 9, law enforcement agents used a surveillance camera to monitor a big northwest Baltimore parking lot known as “the panyard,” officials said. Agents saw Taylor engage in hand-to-hand drug transactions before removing an object from his waistband. Taylor then put the object inside a pizza box on top of a recycling bin.

Law enforcement arrested the defendant and then recovered a handgun, loaded with a magazine containing 12 rounds of live ammunition, that was reported stolen in May of 2022.

While searching the area, agents also found a bag containing additional plastic bags with several vials and jugs of fentanyl, cocaine and cocaine base as well as a digital scale with white residue on it, according to officials. Agents also found $1,549 in cash.

Taylor faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison for possession with the intent to distribute controlled substances and a minimum of five years, consecutive to any other sentence he receives, and a maximum of life in prison for possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The defendant also faces an additional maximum of two years behind bars for violating his supervised release conditions.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is a “program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone,” according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office.