William “Bill” Harlan Parker, IV, 41, of Wheatland, Mo., is behind bars for three years and 10 months after being sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing two unregistered machine guns. The conviction, handed down Dec. 7, 2016, by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough, marks the end of a violent, defiant stand against federal firearms law—one that included threats to gun down law enforcement.
Parker pleaded guilty on May 17, 2016, to possessing machine guns, a crime compounded by his prior misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence, which barred him under federal law from owning any firearm or ammunition. The weapons were uncovered during a search warrant executed at his Wheatland residence on Oct. 23, 2015—raid footage and reports showing Parker standing in a hallway, AR-15 in hand, before dropping it on command and being cuffed.
Inside the home, agents seized an arsenal: an AR-15 style rifle, a .223-caliber rifle, a Springfield .40-caliber pistol, a Stevens 12-gauge shotgun, an Archangel .22-caliber rifle, and a Para .45-caliber pistol. But it was what they found in a nearby van that turned the case federal—a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber handgun with no serial number, a 12-gauge shotgun with no markings, and two AR-15-style rifles with no identifying marks. Both rifles were fully automatic, legally defined as machine guns, and neither was registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.
Devlin Quanah Parker, 21, Parker’s son and co-defendant, was found sleeping on a cot in the van. He later pleaded guilty on Aug. 2, 2016, to possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number and awaits sentencing on Dec. 19, 2016. The guns in the van—especially the untraceable “ghost guns”—were the centerpiece of a growing stockpile built in defiance of federal law.
William Parker didn’t hide his contempt. To cooperating informants, one wired with a recording device, he bragged about building AR-15s without serial numbers. “You’re not supposed to do that, but I don’t believe in NFA rules, personally,” he said. He also threatened violence: “If they’re going to take my guns, I’m going to die, I’m giving my bullets first… I’m going to take as many of them as I can.”
The case was investigated by the Hickory County Sheriff’s Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. Parker now faces federal prison without parole—a sentence echoing his own words: defiance met with consequence.
Related Federal Cases
- Keith R. Hardin Convicted of Illegal Firearm Possession · Kansas
- Charles Allen Roark Gets 12 Years for Illegal Firearm Possession · Washington
- Gerald E. Waters Gets 10 Years for Meth-for-Guns Swap · Arkansas
- Indiana Man Indicted for Illegal Firearm Possession in Missouri · Illinois
- Darrick Thomas Brown Sentenced for Illegal Firearm Possession · Missouri
Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Weapons
- Source: Official Source ↗
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
WeaponsWeaponsWeaponsWeapons