BECKLEY, W.Va. - A Beckley man pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal firearm offense, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. Jeffrey Alpaugh, 46, of Beckley, West Virginia, entered his guilty plea to dealing firearms without a license. U.S. Attorney Stuart commended the investigation of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Beckley Police Department.
“To keep guns out of the wrong hands and to protect our Second Amendment rights, we will aggressively prosecute individuals like Alpaugh that violate our gun laws," said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.
Alpaugh admitted that from in or about February 2017, to on or about Oct. 30, 2017, at or near Beckley, Raleigh County, West Virginia, within the Southern District of West Virginia and elsewhere, he willfully engaged in the business of dealing firearms affecting commerce without a license. Specifically, during that timeframe he offered firearms for sale at flea markets and gun shows in Raleigh and Monroe Counties on almost a weekly basis. At all relevant times, Mr. Alpaugh was not licensed under the provisions of Chapter 44 of Title 18 of the United States Code as a manufacturer, importer, or dealer in firearms. On Oct. 30, 2017, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives executed a search warrant at defendant’s home and seized 152 firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Any and all such firearms and ammunition will be forfeited and abandoned by him as set out in the plea agreement.
Alpaugh faces up to 5 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on July 25, 2018. United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the plea hearing.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
