Kelly Justin Van Lewis, a 35-year-old resident of Coweta, Oklahoma, was sentenced on Apr. 10 to 26 months in prison for assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to do bodily harm in Indian Country and for possession of ammunition while subject to a protective order. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that the court ordered both sentences to be served concurrently.
The case highlights ongoing efforts by federal authorities to address gun violence and protect victims of domestic abuse, particularly within tribal jurisdictions. The crimes occurred in Wagoner County, which is within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation.
According to investigators, Van Lewis threatened and pointed a firearm at his victim on April 30, 2024. After an apparent malfunction, he racked the slide three times before being arrested later that day. A protective order was then issued against him prohibiting possession of firearms or ammunition. In June 2025, agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives executed a search warrant at his residence and seized nearly one thousand rounds of ammunition.
"The U.S. Attorney’s Office is proud to join forces with the ATF and with all local, state, Tribal, and federal agencies to investigate and prosecute perpetrators who wrongfully use firearms to jeopardize the peace and safety of our communities," said U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson.
ATF Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge Brian Garner said: "This conviction and federal sentence make clear that those who use firearms to threaten and terrorize intimate partners will be held fully accountable under the law... This work is essential not only to protecting victims and preventing further violence but also to upholding our trust responsibilities to our tribal partners by ensuring safer communities and respect for the rule of law."
Senior Judge Ronald A. White presided over sentencing in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. Van Lewis will remain in custody pending transportation by U.S. Marshals Service to serve his sentence at a designated Bureau of Prisons facility.
