Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

MISSOULA — A federal judge today convicted a Billings felon of illegally possessing a firearm after a bench trial, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen found Gregory Richard Boyd, 40, guilty of prohibited person in possession of firearm. The trial lasted two days.

Boyd faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. The court set sentencing for Sept. 27. Boyd was detained pending further proceedings.

“Boyd possessed a 9mm pistol despite having been previously convicted of a felony and knowing he was banned from having guns or ammunition. Firearms in the hands of felons are a threat to community safety, and we will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute violent offenders. I want to thank Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian C. Lowney and Timothy A. Tatarka, along with and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Billings Police Department, for their work on this case,” U.S. Attorney Laslovich said.

The government alleged in court documents that on April 10, 2019, Billings police officers served a search warrant on Boyd’s residence. Officers permitted Boyd to leave the residence, and he left in a Chevy Blazer. During the search, officers found a 9mm pistol under clothing in a bedroom. The gun’s magazine contained 10 9mm bullets. Two days later, law enforcement learned Boyd had not shown up for work since the search and eventually learned that he had fled to California. On April 17, 2019, law enforcement learned that Boyd’s Chevy Blazer, along with another of his vehicles, was at an autobody shop. The shop owner told law enforcement that Boyd had asked if he could leave the vehicles on his property. Officers searched the Blazer and found a box of 9mm ammunition. The box was missing 10 rounds, and the ammunition was the same brand as the bullets found in the pistol seized from Boyd’s residence. An analysis of the pistol found that Boyd’s DNA was likely on the gun. Boyd was convicted of a federal felony in July 2007.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian C. Lowney and Timothy A. Tatarka prosecuted the case. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Billings Police Department conducted the investigation.

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.