Divaunte Kartrell Young, 24, has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release after being found guilty by a jury of illegally possessing a firearm as a felon. The sentencing was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.
“Career criminals are not in charge of Minnesota,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. “Young threatened this victim with a gun and then tried to bribe his way out of accountability. Acts of violence and corruption like this will always end the same way—with years in federal prison.”
According to court documents, in spring 2023, Young spent the day with the victim, who had recently met him and drove him around Rochester, Minnesota. At the end of the day, Young asked her to drive him from Rochester to the Twin Cities—a trip that would take more than four hours roundtrip—but she refused multiple times. Young then revealed he had a gun in his crossbody bag and threatened her with statements such as “what if I shot your brain” and that he could shoot up the car.
The victim fled from Young, leaving him with her car on the road during cold mid-March weather. She called police after experiencing severe distress due to the threats. Officers responded quickly, finding Young asleep in the front passenger seat of her car and recovering his crossbody bag containing a black and silver Taurus nine-millimeter handgun from the glove compartment.
While detained before trial, Young attempted to obstruct justice by calling the victim from jail and asking her to lie about what happened; when she refused, he tried to bribe her with money.
Young’s criminal record includes felony convictions for domestic assault, aggravated robbery, burglary, and assaulting a corrections officer. He was on probation for four separate cases at the time but had absconded from supervision.
On March 26, 2025, a federal jury convicted Young of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
United States District Judge Eric C. Tostrud imposed the maximum sentence allowed by law—15 years imprisonment—citing Young’s extensive criminal history as “deeply troubling.” Judge Tostrud stated that “Reasonable people fear for their lives when they are threatened with a firearm. There is no question the victim’s fears were justified. The defendant was in a prime position to act on his threats.” He further described Young as “a great danger to the public” who showed “no respect for the law.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) along with Rochester Police Department investigated this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Evan B. Gilead, David B. Green, and Ruth S. Shnider prosecuted it.
