Clever man pleads guilty to trafficking firearms

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A man from Christian County pleaded guilty in federal court today for illegally possessing seven firearms. 

According to a United States Department of Justice news release, Dakota Mitchell, 21, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to traffic firearms, one count of trafficking firearms, and one count of unlawful possession of firearms.

Mitchell admitted to conspiring with a straw purchaser to obtain four firearms, despite being prohibited from possessing them, as he was an unlawful user of controlled substances. He possessed six Glock pistols and a Micro Draco pistol between April, 2023, and July, 2024. 

The release says in May of 2023, a detective with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) responded to a call about a road rage incident at the intersection of Farm Roads 137 and 182.

In a post-Miranda interview Mitchell admitted to yelling and shooting at a vehicle that had stopped short at the intersection. 

GCSO officers seized a Glock 9mm pistol with a high-capacity magazine and a Glock .40 caliber pistol with a high-capacity magazine from the BMW SUV Mitchell was driving.

Officers with the Springfield Police Department (SPD) responded to the scene of a car accident on Jan. 30, 2024, where Mitchell displayed a firearm. The victim of the accident identified Mitchell as the driver and brandisher of the firearm. SPD officers seized a loaded Glock .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol with a high-capacity magazine from Mitchel, the release says.

On April 11, 2024, Ozark School Resource officers recovered a Glock 9mm pistol from a vehicle in the parking lot at Ozark High School. The firearm was ultimately traced back to Mitchell. 

The release says on July 9, 2024, when GCSO officers arrested Mitchell in relation to a vandalism incident, he was in possession of a Glock .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol. 

In a post-Miranda interview, he told officers that he had someone else buy guns for him because he was too young. Mitchell stated that his straw purchaser had purchased the Glock pistol seized on Jan. 30, the Glock seized on April 11, an additional Glock pistol that was not recovered, and an additional Micro Draco pistol for him. 

He also told officers that he had been using marijuana daily since he was 11 or 12 years old and that he occasionally used narcotics and psychedelic drugs.

Mitchell admitted to being a member of an area gang known as “FTO,” who have been linked to a number of violent crimes and firearm offenses, the release notes. 

Many of the members of FTO are unable to purchase firearms due to their youth, history of drug use, or other prohibited status and use straw purchasers to obtain them.

Mitchell is subject to a sentence of up to 15 years in federal prison without parole on each conviction. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.