Cops stake out slaim man’s funeral, arrest attendee on ammunition charges

OAKLAND » Two weeks after a 29-year-old Oakland resident was gunned down in Stockton, police conducted surveillance of his funeral and arrested an attendee on suspicion of illegal gun possession, court records show.

Samaj Dante Moore, of Oakland, was charged in federal court Tuesday with being a felon in possession of ammunition. He was not allowed to possess guns or ammunition because of a 2005 conviction related to shooting a man in the back during a robbery, prosecutors said.

If convicted, Moore faces a maximum of 10 years in federal prison, the complaint says.

The gun Moore is accused of possessing is an untraceable firearm — also known as a ghost gun — because it doesn’t have a valid serial number, authorities said. The complaint says the gun was crafted from parts of two pistols.

Moore was arrested by Oakland police on March 10, after showing up to a mortuary on the 6800 block of International Boulevard for the funeral of Deonta Simmons, 29 — an event which several officers were staking out, the complaint says. Simmons was driving through Stockton on Feb. 22, when a car pulled up and someone inside fired several shots, striking Simmons and causing him to crash. He was killed, and a 21-year-old woman in his car was also struck by gunfire but survived, according to Stockton police.

An agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives wrote in the complaint that Simmons is “known to OPD as a member of the Acorn gang,” and that Moore is also a validated member.

Police have not commented on possible motives for the killing, nor released information about suspects. A GoFundMe page for Simmons’

children describes him as a, “loving husband, son, brother and most importantly a father … He adored his children and provided for them the best way he could.”

One of the officers observing Simmons’ funeral was Oakland police Ofc. Robert Rodriguez, who spotted a weapon concealed in Moore’s pants,

“While Moore’s shirt was raised, Officer Rodriguez observed the frame of a pistol concealed beneath Moore’s waistband,” the complaint says. “Officer Rodriguez radioed to other OPD officers in the area as Moore walked down International Boulevard.”

Moore was arrested at a restaurant within walking distance of the funeral parlor, authorities said. The complaint alleges that the bullets were manufactured in Minnesota, making him eligible for the federal charge.