Gang member arrested after Chattanooga police find gun hidden in couch

Desmond Gearing
Desmond Gearing
photo Desmond Gearing
photo DeAngelo Demarcus Dews smiles into the crowd after having four of his five charges dropped before being sentenced to serve six years by Judge Curtis Smith for aggravated assault after firing his weapon and wounding a man at a Chattanooga Bi-Lo in September 2014.

A well-known gang member and convicted felon was arrested Saturday night after Chattanooga police officers found a gun and ammunition stashed in a couch inside a home on 15th Avenue.

Police encountered Desmond Gearing, a member of the Bloods who is also known as Dez G, around 11 p.m. Saturday outside the home after noticing loud music coming from the residence, according to court records.

The 29-year-old father told police he was living at the home and sleeping on the couch. He gave police permission to search the area, and officers found a box of 50 9 mm pistol rounds under a cushion, according to Gearing's affidavit.

Officers then pulled the couch away from the wall and found a pistol loaded with 9 mm rounds.

Gearing was arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a weapon. He pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and possession of cocaine in 2012. Convicted felons are not allowed to keep guns.

In 2012, Gearing was sentenced to six years on the cocaine charge and three years on the aggravated robbery charge, but both sentences were suspended, so he did not serve his time in jail and instead was out on probation.

Gearing's criminal history in Chattanooga dates back to 2005 - the year he turned 18 - and ranges from domestic assault to theft.

In September 2014, Gearing was shot in the stomach while working at Bi-Lo after he got into an argument with another man.

The suspect in that case, DeAngelo Demarcus Dews, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in 2015 and was sentenced to six years.

And in November 2011, Gearing was one of three inmates who brawled with several corrections officers in the Hamilton County Jail, Times Free Press records show.

He was booked into the Hamilton County Jail on Saturday and released on a $10,000 bond.

Contact staff writer Shelly Bradbury at 423-757-6525 or sbradbury@timesfreepress.com with tips or story ideas. Follow @ShellyBradbury.

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