A Durham man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison following a guilty plea to a firearm charge, according to an announcement by Sandra J. Hairston, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina.
Mario Deandre Taylor, aged 44, received a sentence of 144 months imprisonment and three years of supervised release on November 12, 2024. The sentencing took place in Greensboro, North Carolina, presided over by United States District Judge William L. Osteen, Jr.
Taylor admitted guilt in August to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm involving a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber handgun.
Court documents reveal that on October 5, 2023, deputies from the Durham County Sheriff’s Office attempted to arrest Taylor due to outstanding state warrants linked to armed robberies and other serious offenses occurring between July 28 and October 5, 2023. On that night at approximately 11:00 p.m., Taylor evaded capture twice before leading officers on a high-speed chase through Durham. During the pursuit, he violated traffic signals and nearly collided with a city bus before eventually fleeing on foot with a loaded weapon. He was apprehended shortly after but without the gun on his person. A K-9 unit later discovered the discarded loaded handgun about fifteen to twenty feet from where he was caught.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Raleigh-Durham Safe Streets Task Force (SSTF) alongside the Durham County Sheriff’s Office. An FBI Task Force Officer from the Sheriff's Office led the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Laura Jeanne Dildine prosecuted the case.
The FBI's Safe Streets Violent Crime Initiative has been operational since 1992 and focuses on reducing violent crime through collaboration among federal agents, state and local law enforcement investigators, as well as prosecutors at both federal and state levels.