BOSTON - A Gardner man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Worcester to a federal firearm offense.
Edwin Labaw, 33, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. U.S. District Court Judge Timothy S. Hillman scheduled sentencing for July 9, 2018. In November 2017, Labaw was arrested after being charged in a criminal complaint.
On Sept. 19, 2017, Labaw and another individual, Travis Miller, met with an undercover federal agent in Gardner and sold the agent a double-barrel 12-gauge shotgun, a 9mm Kel-Tech Sub 2000 rifle, and 11 rounds of 12-gauge shotgun ammunition in exchange for $1,200. Miller and Labaw met again with an undercover federal agent on Sept. 27, 2017, in Fitchburg and sold the agent a 7.62x39mm caliber SKS rifle, along with ammunition and magazines, in exchange for $1,800.
According to court documents, Labaw has prior felony convictions and is therefore prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.
Miller was also arrested in November 2018 and charged in federal court in Worcester with being a felon in possession of ammunition and with distributing fentanyl. He has a court hearing scheduled for March 22, 2018.
Labaw faces a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. This case was investigated with assistance from the Worcester Police Department, Gardner Police Department, Fitchburg Police Department, and Massachusetts State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Abely of Lelling’s Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
