Department of Justice

FORT WAYNE- Cornelius Jackson, age 34, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Holly A. Brady on his plea of guilty to aiding in the making of false statements while purchasing a firearm and being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Jackson was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release.

According to documents in this case, in August 2021, law enforcement discovered that Jackson, a convicted felon, solicited another person to purchase a firearm for him from a federally licensed firearms dealer. In doing so, he enlisted a third individual to finance the purchase. Jackson later sold a firearm to a prohibited person. Jackson has three prior felony convictions and, as such, is prohibited from purchasing or possessing the firearm.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with the assistance of the Fort Wayne Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacey R. Speith.

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. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.