Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Lancaster, Ohio, man was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 18 months in prison for illegally possessing firearms after being convicted of a felony offense.

David Scott Scofield, 58, was also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and pay a $15,000 fine.

In May 2019, law enforcement officials seized five firearms, three silencers, more than 6,300 rounds of ammunition, more than 2,000 bullets, nearly 39,000 primers, two canisters of pepper spray, an expandable baton and a stun gun from Scofield’s residence.

Agents with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) were alerted to Scofield’s weapons after Fairfield County probation officers conducted a home visit. Scofield was previously convicted of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle in 2016 in Fairfield County.

During the encounter that led to his 2016 local arrest, Scofield falsely claimed to be a law enforcement officer and possessed an AR-15 automatic rifle with two magazines, a pistol, a knife in a compartment under the steering wheel, a police scanner, and various other magazines, ammunition and knives.

Scofield was also convicted of impersonating a police officer in 2015. The defendant pretended to be a sheriff’s deputy and attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a motorist who turned out to be a real Akron police officer. During that incident, officers found a loaded magazine in Scofield’s pocket and two loaded pistols, a rifle, a shotgun, silencers, a bulletproof vest, a fake badge and a SWAT shirt in his vehicle.

Scofield previously held a Federal Firearms License and operated a part-time, online-only firearms business called Dave’s World. His license was revoked in 2019 as a result of his criminal conduct.

As a convicted felon, Scofield was prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.

Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Daryl S. McCormick, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), announced the sentence imposed today by U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Watson and commended the cooperative investigation by the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office and Fairfield County Adult Community Control Department. Deputy Criminal Chief Brian J. Martinez and Assistant United States Attorney Elizabeth A. Geraghty are representing the United States in this case.