FRESNO – On December 17, 2018, Devone Johnson, 32, of Fresno, was sentenced to three years in prison for the unlawful possession of a firearm. Co-defendant Anthony Thomas, 26, also of Fresno, was sentenced last week to two years and nine months in prison for the unlawful possession of a firearm.

According to court documents:

• on October 9, 2016, Johnson and Thomas possessed an Uzi Model A, 9 mm rifle.
• On October 30, 2016, Johnson told an associate he had a .45-caliber handgun for sale.
• On November 3, 2016, when Johnson was arrested at a Fresno residence, he was found with three additional firearms and ammunition, including a shotgun and two handguns.

Both Thomas and Johnson were prohibited from possessing firearms because of their prior felony convictions.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fresno Police Department, MAGEC, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office, the California Department of Justice, and the California Highway Patrol (CHP) Special Operations Unit (SOU). The CHP SOU is a collaborative investigative effort between the California Department of Justice and the CHP that provides statewide enforcement for combating violent career criminals, gangs, and organized crime groups, along with intrastate drug traffickers. The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, the Clovis Police Department, and Fresno County Probation also assisted in the investigation.

“California DOJ special agents investigate some the most violent criminals in this state,” said California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) President Alan Barcelona.  “CSLEA was instrumental in getting funding approved for the SOUs to combat violent crime in California and to help keep our communities safe.”