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MONROE, La. – Two men from the Monroe, Louisiana area were sentenced by United States District Judge Terry A. Doughty in separate cases on charges of illegal possession of firearms and drugs, announced United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown.

Brent Thomas Chavers, 36, of West Monroe, Louisiana, was sentenced to 216 months (18 years) in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release. Chavers pleaded guilty on October 18, 2021, to one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The charges stem from two separate incidents involving Chavers. The first incident occurred on October 3, 2019, when a deputy with the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office stopped the vehicle Chavers was driving for a traffic violation. When the deputy approached the vehicle, he observed a shotgun in the backseat in plain view. Chavers admitted to the deputy that he was a previously convicted felon, and he was arrested. After a search of the vehicle, the deputy found a bag in the front seat which contained methamphetamine. Chavers admitted to possessing the gun and drugs.

The second incident occurred on January 5, 2021, when deputies stopped Chavers for operating a four wheeler in the wrong lane of traffic. Deputies conducted a pat search and found methamphetamine in a clear plastic baggie in his waistband. He admitted to deputies that he had been driving around attempting to sell narcotics and was returning home. Deputies transported Chavers to his residence and after he consented, they searched the residence and found a safe inside his bedroom with more plastic bags containing methamphetamine, as well as other narcotics packaged for sale. Chavers admitted to possession of the methamphetamine to law enforcement officers.

In a separate and unrelated case, Dondurius Oshay Scott, 29, of Monroe, Louisiana, was sentenced to 102 months (8 years, 6 months) in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. On July 11, 2018, deputies with the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office stopped a vehicle being driven by Scott for a traffic violation. Deputies observed a loaded pistol magazine on the front passenger seat, then saw a pistol on the ground near the front driver’s side tire. Scott admitted to being in possession of the firearm knowing that as a convicted felon he was prohibited from doing so. Scott has a prior felony conviction for conspiracy to commit second degree murder in 2015.

These cases were investigated by the ATF and Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office and were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mike Shannon and Leon H. Whitten.

These cases are part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. PSN is part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.