Michigan Man Sentenced for Federal Firearm Offenses
BOSTON – A Michigan man was sentenced today in federal court in Springfield on firearms charges.
William J. Scott, 32, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 13 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In September 2020, Scott pleaded guilty to receipt and possession of an unregistered firearm, making a false statement or representation with respect to information required to be kept by a Federal Firearms Licensee and making false entries in, failing to make appropriate entries in, and failing to properly maintain records as required.
Scott, who worked for Dark Horse Gunsmithing in South Hadley, Mass., received and possessed a machinegun that fired as a fully automatic weapon. The firearm was not registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record as required by the National Firearm Act. On April 12, 2016 and July 20, 2016, Scott participated in two straw purchases in which he sold firearms to one individual despite knowing that another person would be the ultimate recipient. Scott also failed to complete a background check and an over-the-counter Firearms Transaction form. He falsified information on a Firearms Transaction form and failed to log firearms into the Dark Horse Acquisition and Disposition Record, leaving some such firearms potentially untraceable.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell and Kelly D. Brady, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine G. Curley of Mendell’s Springfield Branch Office prosecuted the case.
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