U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. has sentenced an Oklahoma man to 10 years in prison following his arrest in Missouri for possession of a machine gun and methamphetamine.
Darius R. Clark, 36, was apprehended on August 16, 2022, by officers from the United States Marshals Service, the Dunklin County Sheriff’s Office, and the Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force at a residence in Kennett, Missouri. At the time of his arrest, Clark had two backpacks. One backpack contained a Glock .40-caliber pistol modified with a selector switch to function as a fully automatic weapon. The firearm was loaded and additional magazines were found in the backpack, including an extended magazine with 20 rounds of ammunition. The same backpack also contained $1,120 in cash. The second backpack held 84 multicolored tablets containing methamphetamine and 17 tablets mixed with meth and other controlled substances.
Clark pleaded guilty in September to one count of possession of a machine gun. His arrest warrant was issued due to charges of first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, two weeks prior to his arrest.
The investigation was conducted by the United States Marshals Service, the Dunklin County Sheriff’s Office, and the Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), an initiative aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence through collaboration between law enforcement agencies and communities. On May 26, 2021, the Department introduced a strategy to bolster PSN by emphasizing trust within communities, supporting preventive community organizations, setting strategic enforcement priorities, and evaluating outcomes.
