U.S. Department of Justice

United States Attorney
District of Maine

100 Middle Street
6th Floor, East Tower
Portland, ME 04101

(207) 780-3257

TTY: (207) 780-3060

Fax: (207) 780-3304

www.justice.gov/usao/me

For Immediate Release

May 22, 2009

Missouri Man Sentenced on Federal Firearm Charge

Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Paula D. Silsby announced that on May 21 a federal judge sitting in Portland sentenced Charles Richardson, age 26 of St. Louis, Missouri, to serve 12 months and one day in federal prison for illegal possession of a firearm.

On November 2, 2006, the Central Maine Violent Crime Task Force (CMVCTF) investigated a shooting at a nightclub in Lewiston. Interviews of witnesses at the scene revealed the shooter was a 17-year-old male and that the gun he used was in the possession of Charles Richardson, a convicted felon. The next day, agents from the CMVCTF went to the Lewiston residence where Richardson was staying and seized a .25 caliber semiautomatic handgun and ammunition. According to court records in Missouri, Richardson was convicted of eight felony crimes as a result of four isolated incidents of car theft at a car dealership in 2001.

This case is part of Maine’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative, which is designed to reduce gun violence and illegal gun possession. United States Attorney Silsby said that the investigation leading to this indictment was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the CMVCTF and the Lewiston Police Department.

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