Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

WILMINGTON, Del. – David C. Weiss, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced that Danny Aument, age 48, was sentenced earlier this week to 30 months in prison for one count of unlawful possession of a machinegun and one count of possession of an unregistered silencer. U.S. District Judge Gregory B. Williams pronounced the sentence.

According to court documents and statements made in open court, over the course of several years — while struggling with addition to controlled substances — the defendant amassed an arsenal of dangerous weapons. Upon executing a search warrant at the defendant’s home on August 24, 2022, law enforcement recovered numerous firearms, including ten machineguns and eight homemade silencers. Despite knowing that these firearms were either prohibited or highly regulated, the defendant continued to unlawfully obtain and/or manufacture machineguns and failed to register the silencers on the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.

Upon imposing sentence, Judge Williams noted the seriousness of the defendant’s conduct and indicated that this sentence should serve to deter others from flouting laws regulating firearms.

U.S. Attorney Weiss stated, “The laws regulating the possession of firearms are designed to protect the public. My office will continue to pursue charges against those who unlawfully possess highly dangerous weapons or fail to register those firearms.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith C. Ruggles prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the District of Delaware or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:23-CR-06.