An Augusta man has been sentenced to six years in federal prison for illegal possession of a firearm following a prior felony conviction. U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen handed down the sentence to Raymond Lilly, 41, in U.S. District Court in Portland. After his release from prison, Lilly will serve three years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty on May 2, 2025.
Court records indicate that Augusta police officers encountered Lilly at an encampment in Mill Park in September 2023. Officers saw a bottle of pills inside Lilly’s tent, which he admitted were not prescribed to him. Following his arrest, police found a Smith & Wesson model M&P 15, .22 caliber rifle inside the tent. Because of previous felony firearms convictions in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine, Lilly was prohibited from possessing firearms.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case along with the Augusta Police Department.
“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 gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results,” according to information provided by authorities. More details about Project Safe Neighborhoods can be found at https://www.justice.gov/usao-me/psn.
