Drug Dealer in Restaurant Shootout Faces 10 Years in Prison

GREENBELT, MD — A Prince George's County man faces a decade in prison after pleading guilty to taking part in a shootout at a local restaurant.

Anthony Tyrone Smith Jr., 31, of Capitol Heights, pleaded guilty Wednesday to being a felon in possession of a firearm, in connection with the gunfire at a Capitol Heights restaurant.

According to his plea agreement, on Jan. 20, 2015, Smith was inside a carryout restaurant in the 4800 block of Marlboro Pike in Capitol Heights. As Smith was leaving, two masked men armed with guns approached the carryout entrance. Smith retreated from the vestibule area back into the restaurant. Security footage shows Smith holding a black handgun.

Smith and the two masked men exchanged gunfire through the doorway between the vestibule area and the restaurant's waiting area. Prosecutors say Smith was shot in the right hand.

The masked men fled and Smith ran to a barbershop across the street from the carryout. Prince George’s County Police officers followed a blood trail from the carryout to the barbershop, where they found a loaded .38 caliber semi-automatic pistol with blood smears on it hidden under a bathroom sink.

Smith admitted that he had the gun while he was in the restaurant. Investigators determined the gun had been reported stolen in Susquehanna Township, Pennsylvania in 2014.

Authorities say Smith has two previous felony drug convictions and was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

Smith faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on June 20.