JACKSONVILLE, FL – Jason Stewart Karst II, 37, of Fleming Island, is headed to federal prison for six years after pleading guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. U.S. District Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger handed down the sentence, solidifying a case built on a disturbing collection of illegal weaponry and a history of drug-related offenses.
The case began to unfold in April 2024, when the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) received a tip about Karst and an accomplice brazenly firing fully automatic firearms at a local shooting range. Surveillance footage didn’t lie: Karst was caught on camera blasting away with a fully automatic weapon and a handgun fitted with a silencer. That raised enough red flags to get a warrant.
On May 1, 2024, ATF agents raided Karst’s home. Inside a large safe, they found a veritable arsenal of illegal modifications: five silencers, a privately made firearm rigged with a machinegun conversion device, and another pistol also equipped for fully automatic fire. These matched the guns seen at the shooting range, linking Karst directly to the illegal activity. But the bust didn’t stop there.
As agents were executing the search warrant, Karst himself drove up to the property. A search of his vehicle, conducted by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, turned up a cocktail of further offenses – a white powdery substance, over 20 grams of marijuana, a scale for weighing drugs, a “ghost gun” pistol lacking a serial number, and, crucially, the keys to the aforementioned safe. This wasn’t just a gun case; it was a full-blown criminal enterprise.
Karst’s lengthy rap sheet made this case particularly damning. He’s a repeat offender with prior felony convictions including multiple counts of marijuana possession with intent to sell, possession of other controlled substances with intent to sell, attempting to use a minor in a drug delivery scheme, and – ironically – a previous conviction for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Federal law clearly prohibits him from owning any firearms or ammunition. Further compounding the issue, the silencers and machinegun conversion devices were never registered with the ATF, a blatant violation of federal regulations.
The investigation was a collaborative effort between the ATF, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, with Assistant United States Attorney Elisibeth Adams leading the prosecution. This case falls under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a federal program aiming to reduce violent crime and gun violence by uniting law enforcement and communities. It’s a grim reminder that those who repeatedly flout the law and endanger public safety will face the consequences, and in Karst’s case, those consequences include six years behind bars.
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Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Weapons|Violent Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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