Five men face federal gun and drug charges

NORFOLK

Five men, four of them either on active duty or formerly in the Navy, have been indicted on federal drug and weapons charges that allege they used their military ties in illegal activities.  

Jim Rybicki, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office for the Eastern District of Virginia, identified them Thursday as Pierre Alain Mbekwa Atekwana, 28; Eddie James Bunyton II, 26; Jeffrey Shaun Krauss, 29; and Richardo Veillard, 28, all from Norfolk, and Kelvin DeJuan Brown, 24, from Tennessee.

All were indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury on 17 counts, including conspiracy to violate federal firearms laws, conspiracy to possess, use and carry guns while trafficking in drugs and conspiracy to distribute and possess controlled substances.

Each faces up to life in federal prison if convicted, Rybicki said in a statement.

According to the indictment, the five conspired to transport guns from Virginia to New York and other places. They also conspired to transport controlled substances from New York and other places into the eastern Virginia.

Bunyton and Veillard, who were arrested locally, are currently in the Navy; Atekwana, who was already in custody on other charges, and Brown, who was arrested in Tennessee, previously served.

Krauss also was already in state custody and is awaiting transfer to federal jurisdiction.

Rybicki said the investigation began in early January after the recovery of a cache of stolen weapons. On March 8, federal search warrants were issued and two Norfolk homes were searched for drugs and guns. He did not say what, if anything, was recovered.

"This investigation has been able to identify over 50 firearms that have allegedly been purchased and trafficked by these defendants throughout Virginia, D.C. and New York," Rybicki said in the statement.

The case was a joint investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and Norfolk Police.