Oakland man sentenced in Richmond pot grow shootout, illegally selling machine gun
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- A 30-year-old Oakland man was sentenced Thursday to more than 6 years in federal prison for his participation in a failed robbery and ensuing shootout at a Richmond marijuana grow in 2017.
U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds said Vernell Thrower pleaded guilty to his participation in the shootout and was given additional time for admitting to the sale of a machine gun.
Thrower admitted that he and two others broke into a Richmond warehouse containing a large marijuana grow during the late evening of August 1 and early hours of August 2, 2017.
Once inside, they cut 200 marijuana plants and stuffed them into trash bags. As the three carried the bags to their vehicle outside, a car pulled up on the street outside of the warehouse's gate and the occupants began shooting at them.
Thrower admitted to running back inside and firing two shots from the warehouse's garage back towards the location of the gunfire.
He eventually escaped, but without the marijuana plants.
Thrower admitted he had intended to distribute the 200 marijuana plants had they made away with them. Thrower also admitted he carried a black handgun during the attempted theft because he knew that stealing marijuana plants from a grow house created a potential for violence.
Thrower further admitted in his plea agreement that three months later, on November 2, he sold a machine gun.
On that date, Thrower possessed a Glock 23 .40 caliber pistol loaded with 16 rounds of ammunition and traveled to Makin Road in Oakland to sell it. Thrower admitted he knew the semi-automatic Glock pistol had a "Glock switch" installed in it that converted it into a fully automatic machine gun.
He sold the fully automatic Glock machine gun to another person for $1,600.
