Man Sentenced For Supplying Machineguns To Lansing Gang Members

<_w3a_listitem listvalue="Choose an item."><_w3a_listitem listvalue="GRAND RAPIDS" datavalue="GRAND RAPIDS"><_w3a_listitem listvalue="MARQUETTE" datavalue="MARQUETTE">GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN - U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that Jaquan Foreman, 22, of Lansing was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison and two years of supervised release for possessing machineguns and supplying them to fellow gang members in the Lansing area. Specifically, Foreman possessed and was selling machinegun conversion devices (MCDs), small devices - also called "switches," "buttons," or "auto-sears" - that quickly convert a semi-automatic firearm into a machinegun, capable of firing hundreds of rounds a minute with the single pull of a trigger.

"With this case I am sending a very clear message: if you possess a machinegun conversion device and are driving violence in your community, you are a target for federal prosecution," announced U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. "The devastation machineguns can inflict is horrific. Although violent crime rates have dropped, the spread of machineguns is a growing threat that we are attacking head on."

WATCH: To reinforce this message, and following today's sentencing, U.S. Attorney Totten shared a video message on social media.

Jaquan Foreman is a member of a Lansing-area gang responsible for a rash of violent incidents over the past few years, including numerous shootings and murders. Investigators discovered electronic evidence that Defendant was selling machinegun conversion devices, then searched his home and found ammunition, gun parts, a pistol, and a MCD. Reviewing the cell phones of other federal defendants, investigators learned that Foreman was distributing MCDs to other gang members. Text messages suggested that one of these buyers was Valentino Wallace, who was convicted by a federal jury on August 15, 2024, of possessing a machinegun and now awaits sentencing. Further details are available in the attached Government's Sentencing Memorandum.

"Anyone who contributes to the gun violence in the city of Lansing will be targeted with all the resources available to the Lansing Police Department," said Chief Rob Backus, Lansing Police Department. "This includes our violent crimes initiative partners, which include local, state, and federal agencies."

The Lansing Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy VerHey prosecuted it.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement, and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. For more information, visit www.justice.gov/psn.

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