Hopewell Brothers Sentenced To Prison For Drug Trafficking & Firearms
Thursday, September 12, 2024, 12:00 P.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
RICHMOND, VA.- On Tuesday, September 10, 2024, Michael Vaughan, Jr., 32, of Hopewell, Virginia, appeared in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Roderick C. Young to 52 months in federal prison for being a Convicted Felon in Possession of a Firearm.
According to documents filed with the court, On December 19, 2022, while executing a search warrant, Virginia State Police encountered Vaughan in a Hopewell motel room. The motel room was rented by Vaughan’s brother, Quadir McKinnon, 34, of Hopewell, Virginia, who had just sold 74.37 grams of cocaine, 4.43 grams of heroin, and 96.73 grams of methamphetamine to a confidential informant.
During the search, Virginia State Police Investigators uncovered four firearms, an additional 27.74 grams of cocaine, and 5.93 grams of a mixture containing heroin and cocaine, cocaine, and fentanyl from inside the motel room.
Troopers Apprehend McKinnon
On January 18, 2023, Virginia State Troopers apprehended McKinnon during a traffic stop. Vaughn was in the vehicle with McKinnon. In plain view in the car was a loaded 9mm semi-automatic handgun on the center console. When McKinnon exited the vehicle, a backpack that had also been present in the motel room during the search was tangled around his feet. Inside the backpack, State Troopers found 41.85 grams of cocaine and 6.99 grams of methamphetamine, a digital scale, baggies, and marijuana.
Under the front passenger seat, where Vaughan was sitting, State Troopers was a loaded 9mm semi-automatic handgun, and on the seat was a loose 9mm hollow-point round. During a search of Vaughan, Troopers found.35 grams of a mixture of heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl and .76 grams of cocaine.
Vaughan’s Prior Charges
On July 16, 2012, Vaughan, armed with a sawed-off shotgun and a co-defendant, robbed individuals in a home in Petersburg, Virginia. Vaughan was convicted of eleven felonies in that case and was sentenced to 13 years in prison. Less than two months after being released from prison, Vaughan threw a firearm from the window of his vehicle as Virginia State Police were attempting to conduct a motor vehicle stop. Vaughan received a 32-month sentence on the charges filed in that case.
Vaughan was on pre-trial release when he was encountered inside the Hopewell motel room.
McKinnon pled guilty on September 13, 2023, to Possession with Intent to Distribute 5 Grams or More of Methamphetamine; and Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine. On January 31, 2024, McKinnon, a career criminal, was sentenced to 14 years and seven months in federal prison.
