Capitol Heights Felon Exiled to Over 10 Years in Prison for Gun and Drug Offenses

Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Terrance Deangelo Hamlin, age 27, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, today to 123 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession with intent to distribute marijuana and crack cocaine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  A federal jury convicted Hamlin of those charges on April 26, 2016, after a four-day trial. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Assistant Director in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Washington Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Chief Henry P. Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department.

According to the evidence presented at trial, on June 9, 2015, officers were patrolling an area in Capitol Heights due to a number of recent shooting and homicides in the area.  The officers noticed a strong odor of marijuana coming from an open window of an apartment.  When they knocked on the apartment door, a female, who was the lease holder for the apartment, opened the door and told the officers they could come inside.  Hamlin was in the living room and officers saw two bags of marijuana, two digital scales and multiple baggies on the sofa and floor.  The lease holder signed a written consent for the officers to search the apartment.

Trial testimony showed that the officers recovered:  approximately 215 gram of marijuana; 22 small zip lock bags and 1 large zip lock back containing 10.76 grams of crack cocaine; an eye dropper and bottle with phencyclidine (PCP); approximately $474 in cash; a loaded .45 caliber handgun; a loaded 9mm handgun; and drug paraphernalia.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI and Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation, and thanked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division for its assistance.  Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph R. Baldwin and Deborah A. Johnston, who prosecuted this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.