Jackson Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing a Firearm in Furtherance of Drug Trafficking

Jackson, Miss. - A Jackson man pleaded guilty today to possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca of the Southern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Michelle A. Sutphin of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Mississippi. 

On May 13, 2019, FBI agents and Jackson police officers executed a search warrant on a house in Jackson.  When agents entered, Jekobie Lewis Ransburgh, 23, was sitting on a couch with a digital scale, packaged marijuana and crack-cocaine, and cash.  In addition, a handgun was tucked in his pants.  Ransburgh told agents the cash was drug proceeds and that he possessed the gun to protect the drugs and cash.

Ransburgh was indicted and pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He is scheduled to be sentenced on September 16, 2021, and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI and the Jackson Police Department are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bert Carraway is prosecuting the case.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.