Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Illegal Possession of Firearm and Later Possession of Ammunition Land Felon in Federal Prison for 25 Years
OKLAHOMA CITY — Last week, Cameron Watkins, 31, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced to serve 25 years in federal prison for illegal possession of a firearm in October 2021 and illegal possession of ammunition in July 2022, after a previous felony conviction, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On Dece. 19, 2022, a federal grand jury returned a two-count Superseding Indictment against Watkins, charging him with illegal possession of a firearm, and separately with illegal possession of ammunition, after a previous felony conviction.
According to court documents, Watkins was found to be in possession of a loaded handgun with an extended magazine during an interaction with Oklahoma City Police officers on October 7, 2021, where he barricaded himself in a hotel room. Further, according to court records, Watkins is a known gang member, and was directly involved in a violent conflict between rival gangs beginning in the summer of 2022. Public documents allege Watkins was present for at least three shootings during the conflict. According to witness testimony at a federal jury trial, Watkins shot and killed a metro man on July 20, 2022.
On April 10, Watkins pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm in October 2021. On April 14, a federal jury returned a guilty verdict against Watkins for being a felon in possession of ammunition in July 2022.
Public records further reflect that Watkins holds multiple prior felony convictions, including possession of phencyclidine, a controlled substance, in Oklahoma County District Court Case No. CF-2011-6648, and trafficking illegal drugs – cocaine base, possession of an offensive weapon while committing a felony and concealing stolen property in Oklahoma County District Court Case No. CF-2012-6406.
At the sentencing hearing last week, U.S. District Judge David L. Russell sentenced Watkins to serve the statutory maximum of 25 years in federal prison. In announcing the sentence, Judge Russell noted the jury’s verdict directly implicating Watkins in the murder and stressed the need to protect the public.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Oklahoma City Police Department and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacquelyn M. Hutzell, David M. McCrary and Mary E. Walters prosecuted the case.
This case is also part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice program to reduce violent crime. In October 2017, the Department of Justice announced the reinvigoration of Project Safe Neighborhoods and directed U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop crime-reduction strategies that incorporate lessons federal law enforcement has learned since the program’s launch in 2001.
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