Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Jahmeek Croley a/k/a “Meeker,” age 33, of Albany, pled guilty today to unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon.

The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon; Thomas F. Relford, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); and Chief Eric Hawkins of the Albany Police Department (APD).

Croley, who has prior felony convictions for drug and weapons offenses, admitted that in November 2019 he possessed a loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistol at his residence in Albany. Croley admitted to purchasing the pistol, which had been stolen from a Vermont residence in 2015, from an unknown individual in the city of Albany in October 2019.

Croley was arrested on November 14, 2019, as part of an operation targeting the Yard Boys criminal street gang, undertaken by the Capital District Safe Streets Gang Task Force, a collaboration of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, and has been in custody since his arrest. Croley has additional charges pending in Albany County Court.

Croley faces up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of up to 3 years, when he is sentenced on February 11, 2021 by Senior United States District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.

This case was investigated by the FBI, ATF and Albany Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon.

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see https://www.justice.gov/ag/project-guardian-memo-2019/download.

###