Quantel O. Saunders, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, West Virginia 2023

BECKLEY, W.Va. – Quantel O. Saunders, 29, of Beckley, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm, a federal crime that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on September 19, 2022, law enforcement officers observed Saunders with a firearm tucked in the front of his waistband outside a service station on the 200 block of North Eisenhower Drive in Beckley. Officers stopped Saunders as he was entering his vehicle and recovered a Ruger-57 5.7x28mm handgun from the driver’s side floorboard of the vehicle. Saunders admitted to the officers that he possessed the firearm.

Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Saunders knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony convictions for possession of a firearm by a prohibited carrier and three counts of wanton endangerment with a firearm in Raleigh County Circuit Court on August 3, 2015.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the United States Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Beckley Police Department.

United States District Judge Frank W. Volk presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Brian Parsons 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.

MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS

Violent Crime

Mcclean Falconer, Firearms Offense, North Dakota 1964

Jan 15, 1964

Violent Crime

Eric T. Nakamura, Lying to Federal Investigators, Georgia 2020

Nov 19, 2021

Violent Crime

Christopher Helmick, Child Sexual Abuse Material Receipt, Distribution, and Possession, Ohio 2025

Jun 15, 2023

Violent Crime

Del Angel-Salvador, Federal Criminal Case, New Mexico, 2007

Jan 15, 2007