DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
District of South Dakota

For Immediate Release

Thursday, October 20, 2016
Randolph J. Seiler
, United States Attorney
Contact: Ace Crawford

Sioux Falls Man Convicted on Three Firearms Charges

United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that Darren Kyle Stepp-Zafft, age 30, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was found guilty of three counts of Possession of Unregistered Firearms as a result of a federal jury trial in Sioux Falls.

The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Zafft was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 10, 2016. Law enforcement officers searched Zafft’s Sioux Falls residence on December 10, 2015, looking for evidence of a firearm that discharged into an adjoining neighbor’s apartment. During the search, officers found the defendant to be in possession of two illegal firearm silencers, five illegal short rifles, and nine illegal destructive devices that could be readily assembled into grenades.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Sioux Falls Police Department, and the South

Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Clapper prosecuted the case.

A presentence investigation was ordered. The defendant was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

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St. Paul Field Division