Sean P. Costello U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama
A man from Wilmer, Alabama, has been sentenced to 168 months in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
Court documents state that on April 21, 2025, the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting incident on Trace Lane in Wilmer. Deputies found a 17-year-old male deceased from gunshot wounds at the scene. Witnesses and investigators identified Jason Paul Covington, age 43, as the shooter. After the shooting, Covington hid the firearm—a Winchester Model 1200, 12-gauge shotgun—under a nearby shed and left the area. Deputies later recovered the weapon.
Covington had previously been convicted of Escape and was therefore legally barred from owning or possessing firearms. He was indicted for being a felon in possession of a firearm and pleaded guilty to this charge.
United States District Court Judge Jeffrey U. Beaverstock sentenced Covington to serve 168 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama announced the sentence.
The case was investigated by both the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica S. Terrill and Jimmy L. Thomas prosecuted the case for the government.
According to officials, this prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at combating illegal immigration, dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and addressing violent crime across communities.
