Jury Finds Jan. 6 Prisoner Guilty of 6 Charges for Illegal Weapons, Possession of Classified Document

Jeremy Brown is shown in an undated photo. Courtesy of Tyleen Aldridge

After closing arguments in a week-long trial, a jury found a Jan. 6 prisoner guilty on six charges related to possession of unregistered firearms, grenades, and a classified document.

After deliberating for just over five and a half hours, a jury found Jeremy Brown of Tampa, Florida, guilty of six of 10 charges in an indictment (pdf) related to items seized in his recreational vehicle and residence during the execution of a search warrant (pdf) as part of an ongoing investigation into his connection to the events of Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol.

Presiding over the Dec. 12 trial at the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida was District Judge Susan Bucklew.

According to the Second Superseding Indictment (pdf), filed Nov. 8, 2022, counts one through four charged Brown with knowingly possessing a .410 gauge shotgun with a barrel “of less than 18 inches in length,” and a 5.56 caliber rifle having a barrel “less than 16 inches in length,” not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, in violation of 26 USC 5841. Brown was also charged with possessing two explosive grenades, also not registered, in violation of  26 USC 5845(a)(8).

Count five charged Brown with knowingly storing explosive material “in a manner not in conformity with regulations pursuant to 18 USC 847.” Counts six through 10 were related to a CD on which top secret, secret, or confidential information was allegedly found. One count was related to Brown’s possession of a single classified document related to former prisoner of war Bowe Bergdhal.

During closing arguments, prosecuting attorney Menno Goedman proposed that Brown—a 20-year retired U.S. Army Special Forces Combat Veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan—obtained the top secret documents and grenades while serving overseas in 2005.

Goedman also played a recording of a phone call between Brown and his girlfriend, Tyleen Aldridge, shortly after his arrest. In the recording, Aldridge mentioned the items agents took from their home. When she told him about the grenades, Brown said nothing.

Goedman told the jury Brown’s silence was “because he wasn’t surprised.”

Defense Claims Evidence Was Planted

Brown’s attorney, Roger Futerman, argued that the grenades and a CD had been planted by investigators during the search of the property. He noted that forensic tests conducted on the grenades by the FBI revealed the presence of DNA from two men. Neither belonged to Brown. An animal hair found on one of the grenades did not match either of Brown’s two dogs, Futerman said. The CD case, which Brown is alleged to have had in his possession for 17 years, was pristine, bearing no fingerprints or scratches, the attorney added.

Futerman also questioned how Brown was to have smuggled these items through customs without detection. The individual responsible for logging each photo of evidence testified that she never saw a photo of the CD. The jury found him not guilty of the four remaining charges related to the CD.

“The evidence was manipulated and planted,” Futerman said. “I can’t tell you when it was planted or who planted it. But the forensics don’t lie.”

Futerman also noted how the federal agents immediately turned off all video cameras when they arrived on the property.

Bucklew set Brown’s sentencing date for March 13. Aldridge told The Epoch Times they are going to appeal.