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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that defendant RANDY FIELDS, of Orleans Parish, was sentenced on January 17, 2023 by U.S. District Court Judge Jay C. Zainey on four-counts of a four-count indictment to a combined total  of 125 months imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release, and a $400 mandatory special assessment fee.

In Count 1 of the indictment, FIELDS is charged with possession with the intent to distribute 40 or more grams of fentanyl in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)(vi).  In Count 2, FIELDS is charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1).  In Count 3, FIELDS is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2).  Finally, in Count 4, FIELDS is charged with being in possession of a machine gun in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(o) and 924(a)(2).

On March 31, 2021, the New Orleans Police Department responded to a shooting in the 1800 block of Touro Street in New Orleans, LA.  Upon their arrival, officers discovered FIELDS suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.  As officers attempted to render aid, they discovered a firearm in FIELDS’s back pants pocket.  The firearm was equipped with a Glock-switch device, allowing it to be turned into a fully automatic  weapon.  Additionally, officers located approximately 100 grams of fentanyl in FIELDS’s shirt.

This case is 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 gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

U. S. Attorney Evans praised the work of ­­­­­the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Orleans Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Inga Petrovich of the Violent Crime Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.