BILLINGS-A Billings man who was convicted of illegally possessing a firearm after he attempted to hide a semi-automatic pistol under a child’s car seat was sentenced today to two years in prison and to three years of supervised release, said U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme.
Justin John Kraft, 44, pleaded guilty in February to being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.
Kraft was charged after a traffic stop on June 29, 2018 by a Billings Police officer. Kraft was a passenger in the car and a child was in a car seat. Court records filed in the case said that as the officer approached the car, he noticed Kraft attempt to push something under the child’s car seat. A second officer who also responded noticed a pistol grip under the child’s car seat. Both officers drew their service weapons and ordered everyone out of the car. The firearm under the car seat was a 9mm semi-automatic pistol with a partially obliterated serial number.
Kraft told investigators he had purchased the gun for $200 from a kid off the street and that serial number was removed when he bought it. Kraft was prohibited from possessing firearms because of a felony drug conviction in Yellowstone County in 2011.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Dake prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
