Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

BISMARCK – United States Attorney Drew H. Wrigley announced that on January 27, 2020, United States District Judge Daniel L. Hovland sentenced Willie Israel Navarette, age 42, Watford City, ND, on charges of Possession of Firearms and Ammunition by a convicted felon. A jury convicted Navarette of Possession of Firearms and Ammunition by a Convicted Felon on October 23, 2019, in Bismarck. Judge Hovland sentenced Navarette to serve 10 years imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $100 special assessment to the Crime Victims’ Fund.

This case began when Navarette was stopped for a traffic offense during the early morning hours of May 30, 2018 in Williston, ND. Navarette, the driver and sole occupant could not produce identification. The officer observed a loaded gun magazine in the vehicle as Navarette exited. The officer also observed an empty gun holster on Navarette’s belt. Officers searched Navarette’s vehicle and located a loaded 40-caliber Glock, two rifles, an assortment of ammunition, marijuana, and drug paraphernalia.

Navarette was prohibited from legally possessing a firearm and ammunition due to a 2009 federal conviction in the Western District of Texas for felon in possession of a firearm. He was on federal supervision at the time of the offense in North Dakota.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; US Probation Office, Western District of Texas; and the Williston Police Department, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Hagler.

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