MINNEAPOLIS - A St. Paul man has pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a firearm as a felon, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, on March 7, 2023, officers with the St. Paul Police Department were conducting surveillance at an apartment looking for De’Voncea Lashoun Griffo, 24, a suspect in an ongoing homicide investigation. Officers observed Griffo leave his apartment building wearing a cross-body bag across his chest and get into the driver’s seat of a Chevrolet Equinox. After Griffo pulled into a thrift store parking lot, officers activated emergency lights and conducted a felony stop. Griffo removed his cross-body bag and set it behind the center console of the car, and was placed under arrest. Officers later obtained a warrant to search Griffo’s vehicle and recovered the cross-body bag, which contained a.45 caliber Glock pistol with an extended magazine containing 23 rounds of ammunition.
Because Griffo has a prior felony conviction, he is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.
Griffo pleaded guilty earlier today in U.S. District Court before Senior Judge Michael J. Davis to one count of possession of a firearm as a felon. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later time.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the St. Paul Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Hillary A. Taylor is prosecuting the case.