Convicted Felon Sentenced to 188 Months in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing Firearms in the Furtherance of Drug Trafficking Crimes

Memphis, TN – A local man has been sentenced to 188 months in federal prison for being a convicted felon illegally possessing firearms in the furtherance of drug trafficking crimes. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the sentence today.

According to information presented in court, on May 19, 2016, MPD officers responded to a shooting at 1082 Palmetto. When officers entered the residence they saw Tony King a/k/a Tony Suggs, 40, on a bed with the victim, Christina Allen, who was unresponsive. Officers also found approximately 8 grams of heroin in the defendant's possession. At approximately 8:50 p.m., paramedics with the Memphis Fire Department pronounced the victim dead on the scene.

The defendant admitted to shooting and killing Ms. Allen. According to testimony presented in court, he threatened to kill her approximately one week prior to shooting her.

A firearm was not recovered at the scene, but officers located a 9mm shell casing. Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) ran the shell casing through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN), which identified the firearm used in the shooting as a Sig Sauer 9mm pistol which had already been tagged as evidence in another felony MPD investigation.

In September 2016, MPD received a Crime Stoppers tip that heroin was being sold at 3677 Gillie in Memphis. Officers collected information and performed surveillance on the home, which they used to obtain a search warrant. On September 30, 2016, officers executed the search warrant and found the defendant Tony King, a/k/a Tony Suggs on a mattress in a bedroom of the home with three loaded firearms, one of which was reported stolen. In another bedroom, officers found over 70 grams of heroin, 37 alprazolam pills, 43 oxycodone pills and over 10 grams of methamphetamine.

The defendant was a convicted felon during all times relevant to this investigation.

U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, "We know that drugs and crime go hand-in-hand, and that drug trafficking is an inherently violent business. If you want to collect a drug debt, you can’t file a lawsuit in court; you collect it by the barrel of a gun. If you are a drug trafficker with a gun, we will not look the other way and be willfully blind to your conduct. To turn back the rising tide of violent crime and confront the opioid crisis in West Tennessee, this office will continue to aggressively pursue the guilty and protect the innocent. This significant sentence demonstrates that resolve, and we commend our federal and local law enforcement partners for their outstanding work in removing a violent drug dealer from our streets."

Tony King a/k/a/ Tony Suggs pleaded guilty to illegally possessing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. On December 12, 2018, U.S. District Court Judge Sheryl H. Lipman sentenced Tony King a/k/a/ Tony Suggs to 188 months imprisonment and 2 years supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (AFT) and the Memphis Police Department Organized Crime Unit (OCU).

Assistant U.S. Attorney J. WilliamCrow prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.