Judge Sentences St. Louis Man on Drug and Gun Charges
ST. LOUIS – Denzel Houston of St. Louis, Missouri, appeared before United States District Court Judge Audrey G. Fleissig yesterday afternoon and was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison. Houston previously pleaded guilty to possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime in November 2021.
Pursuant to the plea agreement, on July 25, 2019, St. Louis Metropolitan Police were on patrol in the Clinton Peabody Housing Complex, when officers saw a silver Nissan Maxima that had bullet holes in its hood. Police observed Houston flee the Nissan upon seeing their police vehicle. Houston was briefly detained by police, determined to be the sole occupant of the vehicle and released. An in-depth search of the Nissan, subsequent to Houston’s release, revealed a pistol and methamphetamine in excess of 335 grams.
On September 10, 2019, in the 8500 block of Katherine Avenue, in St. Louis County, ATF agents, along with St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Officers, observed Houston enter a parked Lexus. As officers approached, Houston struck the patrol vehicle with the Lexus. Houston was taken into custody and a subsequent search of the Katherine Avenue residence revealed a .40 caliber pistol, additional methamphetamine, and drug paraphernalia related to the distribution of illegal narcotics.
This case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
