Baltimore men sentenced to federal prison for robbing undercover agents during heroin deal

A federal judge sentenced two Baltimore men Friday to more than a decade in prison for attempting to rob undercover agents during a heroin deal two years ago.

Menard Hazelwood, 29, and Donte Smith, 34, pleaded guilty in September to assaulting a federal officer and using a gun in a violent crime. U.S. District Judge George Russell III sentenced Hazelwood to 13 years and Smith to 12 years in prison.

“These defendants thought they were robbing drug customers, which happens all too often in Baltimore,” U.S. Attorney for Maryland Robert Hur said in a statement. “Hopefully, the sentences imposed today send a message to those who would commit violence that gun crime will lead to federal time.”

In May 2017, undercover agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were working with a police informant to buy $2,000 worth of heroin in the Shipley Hill neighborhood of Southwest Baltimore. In their plea agreements, Hazelwood and Smith both admitted to approaching the car while the agents were waiting for the drugs. The two men pulled guns on the agents and demanded cash, but the agents gave a distress signal to a backup team waiting nearby.

The additional officers arrived and ordered the men to put up their hands. Both took off and Smith was shot multiple times.

The Office of Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby determined the officers’ actions were justified.