NEWS RELEASE

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI

JOHN F. WOOD

Contact Don Ledford, Public Affairs ● (816) 426-4220 ● 400 East Ninth Street, Room 5510 ● Kansas City, MO 64106

www.usdoj.gov/usao/mow/index.html

FEBRUARY 8, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PROJECT CEASEFIRE

KC MAN SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS FOR ILLEGALLY

POSSESSING AMMUNITION

ARREST FOLLOWED HIGH-SPEED PURSUIT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – John F. Wood, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Kansas City, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing ammunition.

Joshua R. Clifton, 27, of Kansas City, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Nanette K. Laughrey on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2007, to 10 years in federal prison without parole, which is the statutory maximum penalty.

Clifton was arrested on April 17, 2007, following a lengthy pursuit from Kansas City and Raytown police officers. When police officers attempted to stop Clifton’s vehicle at Blue Ridge Cut-Off and Raytown Road, he led officers on a pursuit that included assistance from the police helicopter. Clifton was eventually stopped by officers in Raytown. During a search of his vehicle, officers discovered a box of 7.62 x 39 mm ammunition on the front passenger seat floorboard.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Clifton has prior felony convictions for tampering, possession of a controlled substance, burglary and car theft.

This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Venneman. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Ceasefire

Project Ceasefire, launched in October 1999, is a cooperative initiative by federal and local law enforcement and the Kansas City Crime Commission that targets for federal prosecution persons who unlawfully use or possess firearms.

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