Department of Justice

NORFOLK, Va. – A Portsmouth man was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for possessing a firearm used in the shooting of a child and straw purchasing another firearm used in a second shooting.

According to court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Antonyo Taylor, 27, possessed a tan Smith and Wesson M&P connected to the homicide of a seven-year-old girl in Portsmouth, and separately straw purchased a GIRSAN MC 1911. On December 22, 2020, Taylor told others that he wanted to go shoot at rival gang members. Taylor and others, riding inside a gold Acura TL pulled alongside another vehicle that Taylor incorrectly indicated contained rival gang members. Taylor then fired his tan Smith and Wesson M&P towards the other vehicle. During this shooting, one of the passengers in the second vehicle, a seven-year-old girl, was shot and killed. Separately, on or about September 20, 2020, Taylor straw purchased a GIRSAN MC 1911. A co-conspirator of Taylor purchased the firearm from a legal firearm vendor and, during the purchase, checked the box on the ATF form 4473 indicating that they were the actual buyer of the firearm. The co-conspirator then transferred the firearm to Taylor. According to text messages obtained by law enforcement, Taylor admitted he used this firearm in a separate shooting in October of 2020 in Portsmouth that did not result in injuries.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Craig Kailimai, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. Judge John A. Gibney, Jr.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Heck prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:22-cr-127.