PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Author's note: The video above is on file from August 25, 2021.
A Portsmouth man has been sentenced to five years in prison for trafficking illegal firearms and selling heroin, according to the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Shon E. Melon, 32, of Portsmouth trafficked at least 19 firearms, ranging from shotguns to assault rifles and a Ruger with a scope and laser modification.
Several guns were used in connection to a series of burglaries in the London Oaks neighborhood in Portsmouth.
Melon's sentencing comes in a series of cases that have been discovered as part of a major, large-scale narcotics and firearms trafficking investigation, Operation High Tide. There have been 24 other individuals who have been sentenced so far.
So far, Operation High Tide has seized drugs with a total street value of nearly $1 million, more than $560,000 in cash and over 65 firearms.