Jury Finds Felon Guilty Of Possessing Firearm And Multiple Bags Of Drugs For Distribution

Orlando, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that a federal jury has found Curtis Tyrone Johnson (35, Melbourne) guilty of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon and possession with the intent to distribute various controlled substances. Johnson faces a minimum mandatory term of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 10, 2023.

According to evidence presented at trial, on March 25, 2022, the Melbourne Police Department and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team, along with members of the DEA and the FBI, executed search warrants at two residences on Williams Street in Melbourne. While law enforcement moved in to set a perimeter one street south, Johnson came jogging down the side of a residence holding a black bag. Upon making eye contact with law enforcement, Johnson took off running through backyards on Ryoland Street. Agents following Johnson observed him holding the black bag and a firearm. Johnson was given commands to put his hands in the air but instead threw the black bag and firearm over a fence into a church parking lot. Both items, the Glock .40 caliber pistol loaded with 16 rounds of ammunition, and a bag containing approximately 181 grams of methamphetamine, 35 grams of crack cocaine, 15 grams of fluorofentanyl, and 194 grams of N, N-Dimethylpentylone – a drug similar to MDMA – were recovered.

After he was arrested, Johnson told agents that they “didn’t get no gun off me” and asked if possession is nine-tenths of the law. Further investigation revealed that a vehicle located in an open field, which had been towed to the Melbourne Police Department pending a search warrant, belonged to Johnson and his girlfriend. Law enforcement searched the vehicle and located $7,000 inside a sock and two digital scales. During a jail phone call that Johnson had placed to his girlfriend after his arrest, Johnson instructed his girlfriend to get the title to the car because there were 8 “wraps” in the vehicle, which is common street terminology for a stack of $1,000.        

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Melbourne Police Department, and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Beatriz Gonzalez and Megan Testerman.