GAINESVILLE, Fla. A federal judge has sentenced 21-year-old Lagarius Joseph Johnson to 35 years and 3 months in prison after a jury found he possessed marijuana with intent to distribute, illegally possessed a firearm as an unlawful user of controlled substances, possessed a machine gun, and possessed a machine gun in furtherance of drug trafficking. The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of Florida said officers surveilling the Majestic Oaks apartments attempted to detain Johnson, who fled, discarding a backpack and pistol. Inside the pack: distribution-quantity marijuana, baggies, and a digital scale. The pistol, officials said, had a conversion device rendering it fully automatic. Investigators secured warrants for Johnsons phone and social-media accounts and presented photos of Johnson posing with guns and cash and advertising marijuana for sale, including on the arrest day. Agencies involved included the Alachua County Sheriffs Office, the Gainesville Police Department, FBI, DEA, ATF, and FDLE. The court also ordered Johnson to forfeit the firearm and conversion device and imposed 10 years supervised release. Prosecutors linked the prosecution strategy to coordinated federal initiatives against violent crime and gun/drug trafficking. Local officials emphasized the public-safety risk posed by auto-sear devices; ATFs Tampa Field Division said the case showcased partnership leverage against armed offenders. Johnson faces unrelated state charges for attempted first-degree murder involving a machine gun, to which he has pleaded not guilty.