CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A Wood County man pled guilty to a federal gun crime, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. Mark Matthew Smith, 29, of Parkersburg, pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Smith admitted that he possessed a KAHR,.45 caliber pistol during a traffic stop on December 6, 2017 in Parkersburg. His possession of the firearm was illegal due to his having been convicted in the Circuit Court of Wood County of forgery in December 2011 and grand larceny in January 2012.
Smith faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on Jan. 23, 2020.
The Parkersburg Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives conducted the investigation. United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program, 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
