Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Emmanuel Medina, age 35, of Albany, pled guilty today to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Troy Police Chief Daniel DeWolf made the announcement.

Medina admitted that on June 27, 2022, Troy Police Officers responded to a disturbance call in Lansingburgh and found him outside of a house, attempting to conceal a loaded handgun inside of a Jeep Wrangler. Medina eventually stepped away from the vehicle and was safely detained. Officers found a loaded Hi-Point Firearms .380 ACP pistol in the part of the Jeep where Medina had just been observed. Medina admitted that he possessed the handgun in order to protect the cash proceeds (totaling about $2,610.22) that he had generated from recent, prior heroin sales, as well as to protect himself when he had sold and possessed that heroin.

Medina has been in custody since his arrest on June 27, 2022. He faces at least 5 years and up to life in prison when he is sentenced on June 21, 2023 by Chief United States District Judge Brenda K. Sannes.

This case was investigated by the Troy Police Department, with assistance from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett is prosecuting the case.