Department of Justice

HAMMOND- Dante Jones, 26 years old, of East Chicago, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Senior Judge James T. Moody on his plea of guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Jones was sentenced to 41 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, on June 20, 2021, law enforcement responded to a 911 call at a residence in East Chicago. When law enforcement arrived and knocked on the door, Jones answered the door with a loaded firearm in his hands. Jones’ criminal history revealed he has a prior 2016 felony conviction for aggravated vehicular hijacking from Illinois which prohibits him from possessing any firearm or ammunition.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with the assistance of the East Chicago Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Toth.

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.