United States Drug Enforcement Administration

BUFFALO, N.Y.—U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Austin Gordon, 57, of Jamestown, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, five grams or more of methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, which carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 50 years.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua A. Violanti, who is handling the case, stated that between June and December 2019, Gordon bought, sold, and distributed quantities of methamphetamine for profit the Jamestown area, utilizing Facebook to conduct his drug trafficking activities. On July 16, 2019, investigators searching for a federal fugitive at a Bishop Street residence in Jamestown, discovered methamphetamine in the residence. Subsequently, during the execution of a search warrant, they recovered methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia, and $1,476 in cash. On November 29, 2019, investigators executed a search warrant at Gordon’s Newland Avenue residence, recovering 32 grams of methamphetamine, illicit mushrooms, $1,642 in cash, two firearms, and 454 rounds of ammunition. Gordon was previously convicted of felonies in Chautauqua and Cattaraugus County Courts and is legally prohibited from possessing a firearm.

Co-defendants Rocco Beardsley and Miller Hagga are scheduled for trial on September 6, 2023. Co-defendants Kylie Reeves, Garland Beardsley, Tyler Tedesco, Michael Murphy, and Giselle Bennett were previously convicted and are awaiting sentencing.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Jamestown Police Department and the Jamestown Metro Drug Task Force, under the direction of Jamestown Police Chief Timothy Jackson; the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Frank A. Tarentino III, New York Field Division; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division, and the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff James Quattrone.

Sentencing is scheduled for November 7, 2023, before Judge Arcara.