Michele Beckwith Acting U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California
After a five-day trial, a federal jury in Sacramento delivered a guilty verdict for Darren Tramaine Tony Mitchell, a 35-year-old resident of Vallejo. Mitchell was convicted of one count of possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute and one count of being a felon in possession of firearms, as announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith. The trial was conducted under the supervision of Senior United States District Judge William B. Shubb.
The evidence presented during the trial included recordings of Mitchell's phone conversations, which revealed negotiations for selling 1,000 methamphetamine pills to a buyer who later testified in court. Following these recordings, federal law enforcement executed a search warrant at Mitchell’s home in Vallejo. The search yielded pills laced with methamphetamine, an industrial pill pressing machine, a loaded AR-15 rifle, and a loaded Smith & Wesson pistol with its serial number obliterated, hidden inside the residence's dishwasher.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cameron Desmond and Sam Stefanki.
Mitchell is scheduled for sentencing by Judge Shubb on July 7, 2025. He faces up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine, though the final sentence will be decided at the court's discretion, considering statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
