Sherwood Watson Caraway, Gun Possession, North Carolina 2017

A convicted felon in North Carolina has been sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. Sherwood Watson Caraway, 62, of Pamlico County, was also fined $10,000 and ordered to forfeit all of his firearms and ammunition. His supervised release will last for 3 years after his prison sentence.

Caraway’s troubles began in 2005, when he was convicted in federal court for illegally dealing firearms without a license. At the time, he owned and operated S&D Show Promotions, Inc., a gun and knife show production company that holds events throughout Eastern North Carolina. Despite his conviction, Caraway continued to operate gun shows in the area.

However, his actions did not go unnoticed. In 2016 and 2017, investigators uncovered evidence that Caraway was still in possession of multiple firearms in his home in Merritt, North Carolina. On September 2, 2017, detectives with the Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on Caraway’s home and found numerous rifles, shotguns, and handguns, along with thousands of rounds of ammunition.

Agents also searched a residence owned by Caraway’s daughter, where they seized another 33 firearms that had previously been kept at Caraway’s house. In total, the Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”) seized over forty firearms.

Caraway eventually pleaded guilty to the charges on July 11, 2019. He sold his interest in the gun shows in 2020. His sentencing was announced after a hearing in federal court, where U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan handed down the sentence.

G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, praised the efforts of the investigators and prosecutors in the case. The Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office and ATF investigated the case, while Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura S. Howard prosecuted it.

Caraway’s case serves as a reminder that the laws against gun possession by felons are in place for a reason. The sentence handed down in this case should be a warning to others who might be tempted to break the law and put themselves and others at risk.

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