Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that a Trenton man was sentenced to 30 years in prison today as a result of his trial conviction for selling four guns – including two semi-automatic weapons – during an investigation by the New Jersey State Police. In the investigation, detectives also seized numerous oxycodone pills from the man, who was dealing them out of his residence.
According to authorities, Martin Delvalle, 53, of Trenton, was sentenced today to 30 years in state prison, including 15 years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Peter E. Warshaw Jr. in Mercer County. Delvalle was convicted at trial on Nov. 9, 2017 by a Mercer County jury of four counts of first-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, four counts of unlawful disposition of a weapon, and counts of possession of a weapon as a convicted felon, possession of oxycodone with intent to distribute, possession of oxycodone with intent to distribute within 500 feet of a park, possession of oxycodone with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school, and possession of oxycodone.
Officials say Delvalle was sentenced to 20 years, including 10 years of parole ineligibility, for first-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, and 10 years, including five years of parole ineligibility, for second-degree possession of oxycodone with intent to distribute, with the sentences to run consecutively. The charge of unlawful possession of a weapon is a first-degree offense if the defendant has a prior felony conviction that falls under the No Early Release Act.
Police say Delvalle’s prior convictions include a first-degree sexual assault conviction for raping a young woman in 2001, as well as charges of aggravated assault, robbery and burglary.
New Jersey State Police Crime Suppression Central Unit arrested Delvalle during an investigation by the during which Delvalle sold four guns to a cooperating witness between December 2014 and March 2015. Those guns included an Armi Model AP 80 AK .22-caliber semi-automatic rifle, a Kel-Tec 9mm Luger semi-automatic handgun, a .44-caliber Magnum revolver, and a .32-caliber revolver.
The defendant sold the guns out of his residence on Academy Street in Trenton. When the State Police arrested Delvalle on April 15, 2015 and executed a search warrant at his home, they seized a stash of 184 oxycodone pills for which he had no valid prescriptions. Detectives determined that Delvalle had also been illicitly selling the opioid pain pills.
Officials say Delvalle was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2002 for the rape of a 23-year-old college student. Delvalle assaulted the woman after she got off of a bus in Trenton on the night of Feb. 27, 2001. Delvalle dragged her to a vacant lot and raped her.