Edgar Warren Willis Jr., Felon in Possession of a Firearm, West Virginia 2024

Charleston Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun Crime

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Edgar Warren Willis Jr., 39, of Charleston, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 27, 2024, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at a Red Oak Street residence in Charleston where Willis was staying. Officers found a backpack in a bedroom containing a Lorcin Engineering Model L380 .380-caliber pistol during the search. Willis admitted to possessing the seized firearm.

Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Willis knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony convictions for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, to-wit heroin, on January 21, 2022, and for wanton endangerment and conspiracy to possess with intent to deliver a controlled substance, to-wit heroin, on August 10, 2015, all in Kanawha County Circuit Court.

Willis is scheduled to be sentenced on June 12, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Charleston Police Department-Street Crimes Unit.

United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Samuel D. Marsh is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdwv/pr/charleston-man-pleads-guilty-federal-gun-crime-30