SACRAMENTO, CALIF. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - California, Eastern), published as received.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Zuryess Roberts, 26, of Vallejo, was sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to seven years in prison for illegal gun trafficking and possessing a machine gun conversion device, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
A federal jury found Roberts guilty in May 2025 after trial.
According to court documents and evidence introduced at trial, Roberts was the leader of a loosely affiliated crew that was illegally selling dangerous, high-powered weapons in Vallejo using a Super 8 motel on Solano Avenue in Vallejo as the hub of their criminal activity. During the investigation, on multiple separate occasions, Roberts sold and oversaw the sale of dangerous weapons, including a machine gun conversion device and facilitated the sale of multiple untraceable ghost guns, on the streets of Vallejo to a person he believed to be a violent criminal. In total, Roberts was responsible for selling 13 firearms, and he received approximately $7,850, from selling firearms during the course of the investigation.
Four co-defendants were convicted of firearms-related crimes and sentenced to federal prison. They include:
Taezon Laurece Sanderson, 23, sentenced to 36 months;
Divaya Talley, 18, sentenced to 36 months in prison;
Napoleon Washington, 45, sentenced to 15 months in prison;
Anderson Thurston, 66, sentenced to 12 months in prison.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Vallejo Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hitt prosecuted the case.
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the Department of Justice’s nationwide initiative that brings federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement, prosecutors, and other public safety partners together to coordinate efforts to combat violent crime and make communities safe. Coordinated by U.S. Attorneys’ offices in each of the 94 federal districts, PSN is tailored to particular communities to strategically address specific violent crime and public safety challenges. As a key component of Operation Take Back America, PSN serves a central role in the Department’s commitment to make our country safe. PSN emphasizes three core principles: rapid federal response to violent crime and criminal offenders; strong, strategic partnerships among law enforcement at all levels; and accountability and deterrence through the prosecution of the most serious, readily provable offenses and other strategies. These efforts complement and strengthen President Trump’s Homeland Security Task Forces, ensuring a comprehensive federal response to the most pressing public safety issues facing communities.
