Roswell Man Sentenced to Prison for Unlawful Possession of Firearms

ALBUQUERQUE – Harley Harkness, 41, of Roswell, N.M., was sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison for his unlawful possession of firearms.  Harkness will be on supervised release for two years after he completes his prison sentence.

Harkness was arrested in March 2013, on a criminal complaint charging him with unlawful possession of firearms and possession of a stolen firearm.  According to the criminal complaint, Harkness committed these offenses on Jan. 13, 2013.  At the time, Harkness was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of the following offenses in the 5th Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico:  residential burglary and tampering with evidence in Oct. 2001 and battery against a household member in Oct. 2003.

Court filings reflect that the federal charges against Harkness arose out of a domestic violence incident on Jan. 13, 2013.  On that day, Roswell Police Department officers responded to a domestic violence call from Harkness’s wife who reported that Harkness hit her and pointed a firearm at her.  When the officers executed a search warrant at the Harkness residence in Roswell, they found a .22 caliber rifle, two loaded pistols and ammunition.

In June 2013, Harkness pled guilty to a felony information charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and admitted that he unlawfully possessed the rifle and two pistols on Jan. 13, 2013, in Chaves County, N.M. 

            This case was investigated by the Roswell office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Roswell Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.