DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
Western District of New York

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, November 4, 2020

Buffalo Man Arrested, Charged with Drug and Gun Charges Following Traffic Accident

BUFFALO, N.Y.- U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Jarmaine Dunbar, 43, of Buffalo, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with possessing with intent to distribute cocaine, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The charges carry a minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of life, and a $1,000,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas A. C. Penrose, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, on October 10, 2020, the defendant was involved in a traffic accident in the City of Buffalo. When officers arrived on the scene, they observed a loaded, semi-automatic pistol on the front passenger seat of Dunbar’s car. When patting down the defendant, officers also retrieved a plastic bag containing suspected cocaine.

The defendant made an initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer and was detained.

The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Byron Lockwood and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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New York Field Division