Convicted felon sentenced for possessing firearm

DAYTON – Michael J. Blair, 21, of Dayton, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 51 months in prison for possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony crime.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Dayton Police Chief Richard S. Biehl, Joseph M. Deters, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division announced the sentence handed down Oct. 29 by Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.

According to court documents, in August 2018, law enforcement were conducting surveillance with the assistance of an airplane. During surveillance, those in the airplane observed Blair moving back and forth across a vacant field in Dayton conducting what appeared to be multiple hand-to-hand drug transactions with cars that pulled up in an alley.

Law enforcement searched an area of brush to the side the alley where they had observed Blair and discovered two firearms, an extended magazine loaded with a total of 27 live rounds, fentanyl, cocaine and $1,060. In addition to the handguns, drugs and money, officers found pieces of paper labeled “GEEK,” a term commonly used to refer to drug users. The papers included numerous phone numbers listed on the papers with some also indicating what kind of drug they normally purchase.

Blair pleaded guilty in May 2019. As part of his sentence, he forfeited two 9mm pistols. Blair had previously been convicted of burglary in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.

This case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. 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.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation by the Dayton Police Department and FBI, and the assistance of the Ohio State Highway Patrol and ATF, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Amy M. Smith, who is representing the United States in this case.