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The Eastern District of Texas U.S. Attorney Brit Featherson announced that the court sentenced a Texarkana father and son to federal prison for drug trafficking and firearms violations.
Kelvin Lorenzo Harris, also known as Fifth Ward, 57, pleaded guilty on Sep. 7, 2021, to conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, using a firearm about a drug trafficking offense, and being a felon in possession of a gun. Harris was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Robert W. Schroeder, III on Feb. 15, 2022. Markelvin Renard McHenry, also known as Black, 33, pleaded guilty to the exact charges on Sep. 1, 2021, and was sentenced to 165 months in federal prison today by Judge Schroeder.
According to information presented in court, Harris, and McHenry conspired to sell methamphetamine and a short-barreled shotgun in Texarkana. Specifically, Harris displayed the sawed-off shotgun during a methamphetamine transaction in October 2020. Several weeks later, officials arrested Harris on unrelated charges. After his arrest, Harris directed his son, McHenry, to get the short-barreled shotgun. McHenry then sold methamphetamine and his father’s shotgun, disposing of the money from the gun as Harris directed.
The court convicted Harris and McHenry of multiple felonies, including burglary of a habitation, possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, and firearm theft. The law prohibits convicted felons from owning or possessing firearms or ammunition.
A federal grand jury indicted Harris and McHenry on Apr. 22, 2021, charging them with federal drug trafficking and firearms violations.
A part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts, prosecuted the case.
PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders works together to identify the most pressing damaging 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.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Texarkana, Texas Police Department investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan R. Hornok prosecuted.