A man from East St. Louis, Illinois was convicted Friday by a jury in U.S. District Court of 11 felony charges linked to fentanyl trafficking, firearm sales, and the shooting death of a man in University City in 2019.
Deoman Reeves, 31, was found guilty of all of the charges he faced: one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute more than 40 grams of fentanyl, four counts of possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, three counts of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, resulting in death.
The investigation began with a September 2019 shooting. The University City Police Department requested the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Reeves and his co-defendants later sold fentanyl and firearms to those who were working on behalf of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and undercover ATF agents.
The death resulting charge stems from the Oct. 21, 2019, fatal shooting of David Anderson in the 1100 block of Kingsland Avenue. Evidence and testimony presented at trial showed that Reeves and others fired multiple shots at Anderson in retaliation for a shooting in St. Louis County the day before.
Reeves and two others were indicted on Jan. 6, 2020, and arrested eight days later. A fourth person was later added to the indictment. The three others have all pleaded guilty and two await sentencing.
Reeves is scheduled to be sentenced on December 28 and faces a life sentence in prison.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the University City Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul D’Agrosa and Erin Granger are prosecuting the case.
