A felon observed drug dealing by FBI agents, one block from the FBI’s San Francisco HQ, was found to have a ‘ghost gun’ equipped with an extended magazine containing 29 9mm rounds.
Lazarus Thomas, 31, appeared in federal court today and persuaded U.S. Magistrate Judge Sallie Kim to grant him pre-trial release on a $50,000 unsecured bond.
Thomas’ rap sheet includes two felony convictions for first degree robbery and six felony convictions for second degree burglary mostly related to his penchant for breaking into vehicles. In 2013 he was arrested for the strong arm robbery of five children on a MUNI bus.
FBI agents spied the defendant on Van Ness Avenue on October 25, 2023 handling cash in connection with hand-to-hand drug transactions. They directed agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to detain him, which they did, and who then found the pistol hidden in a Louis Vuitton satchel worn beneath his outer jackets.
Thomas’ release was opposed by Government attorneys who said he “poses a danger to the community that cannot be mitigated sufficiently by conditions of release.”
He will next appear in court on November 13.
The mugshot is from a 2013 arrest. SFPD policy today is not to release booking photographs.
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