NEW BERN, N.C. - A Wilmington man was sentenced today to 72 months in prison for illegal firearm possession. On June 24, 2022, Quemar Deshawn Wooten, age 35, pleaded guilty to the Felon in Possession of a Firearm.
According to court documents and other information presented in court, in February of 2021, members of the Wilmington Police Department received several complaints regarding narcotics sales and people with firearms on the porch of a residence on Meares Street. Officers conducted surveillance on the residence over several days and it was apparent that drug transactions were being conducted. On Feb. 27, 2021, officers approached the residence and made contact with Michael Hines, Quemar Wooten, and another individual on the front porch. During their investigation, officers located a stolen firearm in Wooten’s waistband and another firearm underneath a sweatshirt belonging to Hines.
Hines pleaded guilty to firearms charges on Aug. 12, 2022 and is awaiting sentencing.
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Wilmington Police Department’s Gun Crime Task Force, the Wilmington Police Department, and the New Hanover Sheriff’s Department investigated the case and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney William Van Trigt prosecuted the case. Van Trigt is a prosecutor with the New Hanover County District Attorney’s Office assigned to the U.S. Attorney’s Office to prosecute federal violent crimes and other criminal matters. This has been made possible by a grant funded by New Hanover County.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:22-cr-00055-FL.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
