Nasir Donaldson, left, and Daniel Smith
Two Atlantic County men arrested after Atlantic City police saw them selling drugs were sentenced to prison this week.
Nasir Donaldson, an Atlantic City resident, and Daniel Smith Jr., who lives in Egg Harbor Township, were arrested July 6, 2023, during a surveillance operation in the 2500 and 2600 blocks of Pacific Avenue.
Detectives Nicholas Berardis and Christopher Smith saw Donaldson acting as lookout as John Bonds bought cocaine from Smith, police said at the time.
Each had cocaine on them when arrested. A K-9 indicated drugs were inside the vehicle, allowed a search that led to 24 grams of cocaine and two handguns, including one reported stolen from Georgia.
Donaldson had just been released from prison less than four months earlier, having served his second gun-related prison stint, BreakingAC reported at the time.
Donaldson's history of gun arrests goes back to when he was a juvenile.
He was 17 when he was involved in a shootout between rival gangs during a party inside a Trump Taj Mahal hotel room in March 2016, according to a previous plea. He was sentenced to 18 months’ juvenile probation under a plea agreement in that case.
Donaldson was again arrested in September 2019, after he ran from police and ditched a satchel with a loaded handgun.
He was sentenced to five years on July 27, 2020 in that case, state Department of Corrections records show. Donaldson was released March 21.
Donaldson and Smith, both now 26, now each will serve a seven-year sentence that includes a five-year term of parole ineligibility.
They remain in the Atlantic County Justice Facility pending transfer to state prison.
