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Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
Western District of Pennsylvania

For Immediate Release

Thursday, May 23, 2019
Scott W. Brady
, United States Attorney

Federal Jury Finds Pittsburgh Man Guilty of Possessing Crack, Cocaine, Marijuana and 4 Loaded Firearms

PITTSBURGH - After deliberating for two hours, a federal jury of nine men and three women found Denver Sangster guilty of one count of Possession with the Intent to Deliver More than 280 Grams of Crack Cocaine, a Quantity of Cocaine, and a Quantity of Marijuana and one count of Possession of Firearms in Furtherance of Drug Trafficking, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
 
Sangster, 43, of 443 Idlewood Road, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was tried before United States District Judge David Stewart Cercone in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
 
According to Assistant United States Attorneys Brendan T. Conway and Brian Czarnecki, who prosecuted the case, the evidence presented at trial established that on March 30, 2016, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police executed a search warrant at Sangster’s former residence, which was on Orin Street, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, along with his person and vehicle. During the course of the search warrant, the officers located approximately 340 grams of crack cocaine, 150 grams of powdered cocaine, and more than nine kilograms of marijuana, along with four loaded firearms.
 
Judge Cercone scheduled sentencing for October 1, 2019. The law provides for a total sentence of not less than 15 years in prison and up to life. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based on the seriousness of the and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
 
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Sangster.
 
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent 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.
 
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Philadelphia Field Division