Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Shreveport man was sentenced to 72 months in prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition after being convicted of a felony.

Eric Dwayne Williams, 39, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to forfeit the firearm and ammunition seized during the investigation. According to the October 10, 2014 guilty plea, Williams was arrested by deputy U.S. Marshals and Shreveport Police officers with the U.S. Marshals Violent Offender Task Force in June of 2014 on a warrant from California for a sex offender registration violation. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that Williams had been in possession of a Glock, model 27, .40 caliber pistol and ammunition. Federal authorities located and recovered the firearm and ammunition. It was unlawful for Williams to possess the firearm and ammunition because Williams had previously been convicted of nine felony convictions in California. These felony convictions include his failure to register as a sex offender, second degree burglary, receiving stolen property and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

The ATF; U.S. Marshals Service; the Louisiana Department of Corrections and Public Safety, Probation and Parole; and the Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Gillespie Jr. prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide program designed to reduce violence by aggressively enforcing existing federal firearms laws.