Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane announces that a jury found Raekwon Robinson, 25, of Buffalo, guilty of one count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Fourth Degree (Class C felony) and one count of Reckless Driving (unclassified misdemeanor under New York State Vehicle & Traffic Law). Jurors rendered their decision yesterday afternoon after less than three hours of deliberation following a three-day trial, convicting the defendant of all counts in the indictment.
On Monday, January 27, 2025, at approximately 4:50 p.m., a Buffalo Police officer initiated a traffic stop after observing a vehicle travel at a high rate of speed northbound on Bailey Avenue toward Broadway. The defendant, the operator of the vehicle, refused to stop and continued to drive recklessly on Bailey Avenue where he failed to stop at a red light, causing a collision with another vehicle and a Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority bus. After the crash, the defendant exited the vehicle and attempted to run from police but was quickly apprehended. While being placed under arrest, officers recovered a bag of suspect narcotics from the defendant’s sweatshirt pocket. The suspected narcotics were submitted into evidence for testing, which determined that the substance was greater than one-half ounce of methamphetamine.
Robinson faces a maximum of nine years in prison when he is sentenced before State Supreme Court Justice Betty Calvo-Torres on Tuesday, December 15, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. He was held without bail while pending sentence.
DA Keane commends Officer Bryan Hanover and Officer Kevin Wilson of the Buffalo Police Department for their work in this investigation as well as Forensic Chemist Kaitlin Drollette of the Central Police Services laboratory.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Kristen S. Fischer and Nathan W. Zobrest of the Felony Trials Bureau.