More criminals in the Mid-South making their own machine gun
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A tiny device called a switch can turn a Glock handgun into a weapon of war, and law enforcement says they’re infiltrating the Mid-South.
The official name is a machine gun conversion device. It’s also known as a “switch” or “auto-sear.”
On April 12, police responded to a seemingly standard call. Officers were told to check on a suspicious vehicle in Southwest Memphis when police said two occupants opened fire. They fired back.
Three officers were hit. Officer Joseph McKinney didn’t survive.
One occupant was also injured, and the driver, Jaylen Lobley, was fatally shot.
“As chief of police I am hurt,” MPD Interim Police Chief CJ Davis said. “We are really, really disturbed by the boldness and the use of weapons.”
It’s unclear what guns were fired at officers that night.
What we do know is that WREG Investigators found court records stating just six weeks before, officers had responded to another suspicious vehicle where again, Lobley was in the driver’s seat. This time, he was asleep.
Court records state that tucked next to him was a loaded, stolen Glock illegally modified into a machine gun, so that in one prolonged pull, he could have fired 30 bullets in two seconds. He told police he had fired it before.
But despite that, a judicial commissioner released him on his own recognizance and gave him a curfew since this was the first offense on the 18-year-old’s record.
Teens involved in police shooting had juvenile records
“This defendant does not have any prior convictions, and as such, there is no basis for the court to find that he is a risk, a risk of safety to the community,” Judicial Commissioner Chris Ingram said.
In the audio recording we obtained of Lobley’s bond hearing, the vehicle theft charges were the main focus of discussion, not the modified weapon. That may be because, the weapon charge is a Class E felony, making it the least serious offense that day.
But law enforcement is calling these modified weapons an emerging threat.
ATF Special Agent Tom Neely showed us why.
Special Agent Neely first showed us what a Glock was designed to do. It fired a single round every time he pulled the trigger.
Then, when he fired the switch, 15 rounds fired fast — fast, as in 1,000 rounds per minute. Even in the hands of an expert, it’s tough to control.
“All the semi-automatic rounds were here in the center,” he said.
A big difference, from the switch. While the first bullet might be accurate, the rest weren’t even close.
“They essentially make these firearms impossible to control, especially if you’re using just one hand to try to control a firearm,” said U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee Kevin Ritz.
He said the devices are “really dangerous” and highly illegal under federal law.
Ritz said he’s made it a top priority to prosecute crimes involving switches.
He established a task force called Project Safe Neighborhoods. Local, state and federal law enforcement meet with local and federal prosecutors every week to go over every case involving a switch. They see what cases can and are worth prosecuting at the federal level since penalties are much steeper. They can carry up to 10 years in prison.
“We’re making it a priority, because we’re seeing these devices on the streets,” Ritz said. “We want to identify the drivers of violence. A lot of times, these are repeat players in our system.”
They’ve indicted suppliers like a Memphis man who allegedly ordered 25 switches from China, and have also gone after those caught with the modified weapon like Jaquan Bridges accused of firing shots at Shelby County deputies in 2022.
“We are seeing them, unfortunately, in the hands of younger people,” he said. “I have noticed cities across the country are starting to deal with this challenge as well.”
The ATF reports the number of switches recovered nationwide increased more than 500 percent between 2017 and 2021.
We asked Memphis police for their totals. They’re still working on our request.
“Some local agencies will track this. Not many,” said Daniel Webster, with the Johns Hopkins University Center for Gun Violence Solutions.
He said the device is understudied despite the danger it poses.
Just look at the crime scene outside a Memphis restaurant where witnesses told us they saw a Glock firing like an automatic weapon. Nearly 60 shell casings were marked.
Recently Memphis police showed us the unnerving guns officers are encountering like this Glock with a switch attached, they say, found in a stolen car.
The man arrested got out on bond. Twelve days later, court records state he was caught again with a switch during a traffic stop.
Police said in January, they also found four switches and drugs while searching an Oakhaven home. They said they also found a 50-round drum magazine.
Nine people were arrested.
Law enforcement says some criminals are making these devices on 3D printers, and they continue to modify the design making it even harder to spot.
“This is a huge challenge we just have to acknowledge,” Webster said. “We only have 15 states that have their own laws around fully automatic weapons, and the vast majority of cases of gun-related crimes that are investigated and prosecuted are prosecuted at the state level.”
Webster said state laws aren’t tough enough. In Tennessee, it’s a low-level felony often resulting in sentencing alternatives.
“We can’t expect the ATF and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to solve what’s an incredibly large problem right now. You’re going to need stronger state laws and a willingness to enforce them,” Webster said.
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said they are seeing more cases involving switches.
“If we had a higher-level offense chargeable for it, I think that would be a useful thing,” Mulroy said. “If someone has gone to the trouble of adapting their pistol so that they can fire it as an automatic, they’re up to no good. They’re they’re causing harm in the community.”
That’s why he’s added it to the the list of crimes his office is prioritizing.
“We’re arguing for higher bond amounts when we think that public safety requires it. Asking for monitoring. GPS monitoring or enrollment in like the Memphis VIP program where you have, you know, weekly check-ins,” he said. “Also, more robust investigative tools. So specifically, we’re monitoring jail calls.”
Mulroy said criminals caught with switches must be dealt with accordingly.
He stressed Lobley was a high-risk offender and that federal prosecutors had planned to file charges.
While the DA’s office doesn’t set bail, they can argue for higher bonds and have vowed to do so in priority cases like Lobley’s.
Yet, he still got out.
Mulroy stated he’s re-emphasized to all attorney supervisors their presumption against releasing defendants caught with switches on their own recognizance.
Some cases prosecuted by U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Tennessee:
• Prenagio Baines: MPD officers said he had a machine gun conversion device attached to his pistol. He pled guilty to possessing a machine gun and was sentenced on February 27, 2023 to 24 months in prison.
• Daniel Banks: Officers say while running away from a traffic stop, he dropped his gun with a switch. He pled guilty to drug and gun crimes, including possession of a machine gun. He was sentenced on March 24, 2023 to 84 months.
• Justin Hardaway: In March 2022, officers say he was in a stolen Dodge Charger. He had a Glock handgun with a machine gun conversion device attached. He was sentenced on February 14, 2023 to 30 months.
• Terrance Jones: The switch charge derived from a shooting at Young Dolph’s memorial. Police said he discarded a firearm with a switch. He was sentenced on October 27, 2022 to 30 months for the switch charge.
• Daniel Kirtman: Police said Kirtman, a convicted felon, had a Glock pistol equipped with an extended magazine and a machine gun conversion device. Kirtman pled guilty to firearm crimes and was sentenced on December 7, 2022, to 102 months in prison.
• Michael Thomas: He sold and possessed multiple machine gun conversion devices. Thomas
pled guilty to possessing the switches and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug
trafficking crime. He was sentenced on December 1, 2022 to 84 months.
• Michael Naylor: Investigators discovered Naylor worked at a gun store and was selling
machine guns, switches, and other firearms. During the investigation, agents met with Naylor to purchase switches. On the final occasion, Naylor brought twenty switches to sell. Naylor pled guilty and was sentenced on March 3, 2023 to 27 months.
• Kameron Chatman: Authorities say Chatman was seen in a Facebook video with a switch. On March 9, 2023, he pled guilty in federal court in Jackson, Tennessee, to firearm crimes, including possession of a machine gun.
• Avonta Gregory: He pled guilty on May 1, 2023 to possessing a Glock firearm with a machine gun conversion device.
• Martavious Hodges: Authorities say he sold firearms with switches. He pled guilty on March
22, 2023 to possession of a machine gun.
• Cameron Person: Law enforcement say they found four switches, material to put one together and two firearms in his home. He pled guilty on March 7, 2023 to possession of a machine gun.
• Michael Rimmer, Jr.: Police say he had two firearms with switches. He pled guilty on March 20, 2023 to a drug crime and possession of machine guns.
• Mitchell Shaw: He pled guilty on September 28, 2022 to possessing a machine gun.
• Maurice Wilson: Defendant possessed a switch and pled guilty on March 14, 2023 to firearm
crimes.
• Dionco Lowe: Investigators say he had four firearms and a machine gun conversion device. He pled guilty on May 9, 2023 to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
• Nakiel Addison: He was indicted on March 30, 2023 for federal gun crimes, including
possessing a firearm with a switch.
• Khamron Roberts: He was indicted on April 27, 2023 for federal gun crimes, including
possessing a firearm with a switch.
• Roosevelt Wilson: He was indicted on April 27, 2023, for federal gun crimes. His alleged
crime involved ordering 25 switches from China.
• Jaquan Bridges: He was indicted on April 27, 2023 for possessing a machine gun. Investigators say he shot at Shelby County deputies on the interstate and they recovered a gun with a switch.
• Jaqerious Conner: Conner was indicted on November 10, 2022 for drug and gun crimes,
including possession of a machine gun.
• Quatavious Doggett: He was indicted on March 16, 2023 for being a felon in possession
of a firearm and possession of a machine gun. Police say he had a firearm with a switch.
• Pariss Johnson, Paris Brown and Leroy Cloyd: They were indicted on February 16, 2023 for possessing machine guns. Police say they purchased guns with conversion devices in an undercover operation.
• Timothy Williams: He was indicted on February 7, 2023 for being a felon in possession
of firearms and other crimes. Police say he had four firearms and a machine gun conversion device.
• Eddie Martinez: Police say agents recovered a Glock 9mm with a switch. Martinez was indicted on January 26, 2023 for possession of a machine gun.
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