Wilmington Man Sentenced For Firearm Violations

RALEIGH – United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that today in federal court, Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever III sentenced William Jenkins , 25, of Wilmington to 137 months imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release.

jenkins was named in an Indictment filed on April 24, 2012 charging him with Possession of a Firearm by a Felon and Theft of Firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee.  On July 2, 2013, jenkins pled guilty to those charges.

According to the investigation, on October 26, 2011, William JENKINS and Joshua Zack traveled to Rocky Point Guns and Ammo in Rocky Point, North Carolina and broke into a locked trailer behind the store. They stole 27 firearms from that businesses.  JENKINS and Zack then took the firearms to JENKINS’ residence in Wilmington where they hid the firearms in JENKINS’ back yard.  JENKINS and Zack were caught on November 2, 2011 when they went back to the same store in an apparent attempt to break in again.  Officers with the Pender County Sheriff’s Office were patrolling the area more heavily after the first break in and caught JENKINS and Zack as they were parked by the store about to break in a second time.  Several of the guns have been recovered in various investigations by the Wilmington Police Department.

Investigation of this case was conducted by the Pender County Sheriff’s Office, the Wilmington Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Special Assistant United States Attorney Charity Wilson represented the government.  Ms. Wilson is a prosecutor with the District 5 District Attorney’s Office encompassing New Hanover and Pender Counties.  District Attorney Ben David has assigned her to the United States Attorney’s Office to prosecute federal crimes of violence and firearm related crimes.