Contact: Beth Stone 508-584-8120
BROCKTON – A Tennessee man has pleaded guilty to charges that he, along with two others brought a cache of weapons into the City of Brockton, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz has announced.
Today, Theodore E. Baskette (DOB: 03/09/99), pleaded guilty to 9 counts of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, 10 counts of Unlawful Possession of a Large Capacity Feeding Device, and one count of Unlawful Possession of a Loaded Firearm. Brockton Superior Court Judge Angel Kelley sentenced Baskette to serve not less than 3 and not more than 5 years in State Prison.
“My Office remains committed to investigating and holding individuals from out-of-state who traffic firearms into the Commonwealth accountable,” DA Cruz said. “This and the sentence of Baskette’s co-defendant Barshaw, neither of whom had any prior criminal record, is a significant one. But it is a sentence that we hope will serve as a warning for anyone who thinks they can make a profit from putting firearms onto the streets of Brockton.”
On March 16, 2019, Brockton Police received a 911 call that a man was seen with a firearm in his possession inside a duffel bag on the roof of a car parked along Longworth Avenue. Police responded and located the vehicle the 911 caller had described with the driver’s door ajar, which closed upon the arrival of police. Brockton Police officers approached the car and identified a handgun with a large capacity magazine of the passenger side floor, loaded with a large capacity feeding device, ammunition and magazines strewn throughout the car.
Officers questioned Baskette, Domenic E. Barshaw (DOB: 11/27/00) and Christopher Smart (03/07/01), all of Tennessee, who were with the vehicle and inquired about seeing their licenses to carry. None of the men had one. Police then searched the rest of the vehicle and located six firearms, all semi-automatic and one AK-47, three large capacity feeding devices and numerous other magazines. Police additionally recovered six large capacity magazines, one 9mm firearm and various magazines and assorted ammunition from the duffel bag.
On June 10, Barshaw pleaded guilty to numerous firearms charges that included transporting a firearm into the Commonwealth for the purposes of criminal activity and was sentenced to serve five to five years and one day in State Prison.
Smart, who is charged with the possession of a high capacity feeding device, is next scheduled to appear in court on November 18.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Joseph Janezic and was investigated by Brockton Police and the ATF.