Raekwon Cortez Ford, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, South Carolina 2019

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Gang Member Admits to Possessing Stolen Firearm

Columbia, South Carolina – Raekwon Cortez Ford, a 24-year-old gang member, has pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, federal authorities announced today.

According to evidence presented to the court, Ford was found in possession of a stolen iPhone in November 2019. The device was tracked to a residence in Columbia, where officers from the Columbia Police Department responded and arrested Ford on outstanding warrants.

An investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Columbia Police Department, as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program, revealed that Ford was also in possession of a loaded Ruger .45 caliber handgun concealed in an air vent in his bedroom.

The firearm was found to have been reported stolen from an earlier auto break-in in Columbia in December 2018. A ballistics analysis through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) revealed that the firearm had been used in four separate shooting incidents in Richland and Lexington Counties from June through August 2019.

Ford is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition based upon his prior felony convictions, which include unlawful carrying of a weapon, possession of a stolen weapon, breach of peace of an aggravated nature, and breach of trust.

Ford faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. United States District Judge J. Michelle Childs accepted the guilty plea and will sentence him after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the United States Probation Office.

Assistant United States Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia office is prosecuting the case, which was the result of a joint federal, state, and local investigation.

The charges against Ford demonstrate the importance of the PSN program in reducing violent crime and keeping communities safe. The program brings together federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to target gun violence and gang activity.