Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (c)
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to federal drug and firearms charges, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today.
Reginald Bernard Blunt, 32, pleaded guilty before Senior United States District Judge Nora Barry Fischer to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine and fentanyl, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
In connection with the guilty plea, the Court was advised that an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Pennsylvania State Police between August 2022 and June 2023 into a drug trafficking organization operating in McKees Rocks revealed that Blunt was a member of the organization and lived at a residence where firearms and controlled substances were being stored. On June 14, 2023, law enforcement executed a federal search warrant upon that residence and recovered from Blunt’s bedroom a backpack containing two prescription pill bottles bearing Blunt’s name, a loaded handgun containing 17 rounds of ammunition, and a “Glock switch” that, when attached to the handgun, would render the firearm fully automatic. Law enforcement also recovered from the residence approximately 60 grams of a fentanyl and methamphetamine mixture, 20 grams of fentanyl, and approximately 1,000 rounds of ammunition, in addition to seizing $4,300.
The firearm recovered by law enforcement was determined to be the same one that Blunt—who has previous felony drug trafficking and firearms convictions—had used just before law enforcement responded to a call at Blunt’s residence nearly one month earlier, where it was reported that two individuals were fighting and that one of the individuals possessed a gun. Traffic camera footage of this May 16, 2023, incident obtained by investigators in preparation for the federal search warrant revealed Blunt repeatedly pointing a firearm at an adult male who was accompanied by a child, with the adult carrying the child while ducking behind a vehicle to avoid Blunt as he pointed the firearm. The footage further recorded Blunt permitting the adult to place the child in the vehicle before Blunt brought the individual back to his residence, where, on the porch, the two males began exchanging punches. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.
Judge Fischer scheduled sentencing for August 15, 2024. The maximum penalty for the drug trafficking crime is at least five years and up to 40 years in prison, a fine of up to $5 million, or both. The maximum penalty for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime is a term of imprisonment of at least five years and up to life, which must be served consecutively to the sentence imposed on the drug trafficking crime, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. The maximum penalty for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon is up to 15 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Pending sentencing, Judge Fischer ordered Blunt remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Assistant United States Attorney Brendan J. McKenna is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Blunt.