New Orleans Man is Sentenced for Drug and Machinegun Offenses

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that EMANUEL ROSS, age 24, a resident of New Orleans, was sentenced on December 13, 2023 by U.S. District Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle to 63 months imprisonment after previously pleading guilty to Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine and Fentanyl, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(C) and Possession of a Machinegun in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(o). Judge Lemelle also placed ROSS on supervised release for three (3) years following his release from imprisonment and ordered him to pay a mandatory $100 special assessment fee for each count of conviction.

Court documents reveal that the Federal Bureau of Investigation Violent Crime Task Force and the New Orleans Police Department began investigating ROSS in mid-2022 and discovered an online video of him firing a pistol that had been converted into a machine gun through a “switch” device. A warrant-based search of ROSS’s residence by law enforcement officials on January 27, 2023, revealed the presence of cocaine, fentanyl and various weapons including the machine gun seen on the online video.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

United States Attorney Evans praised work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Violent Crimes Task Force, and the New Orleans Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Mark A. Miller of the Violent Crime Unit handled the prosecution.