Wasilla Resident charged with possessing unregistered silencer

Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that a Wasilla resident was charged with the illegal possession of an unregistered silencer.   

Wasilla resident, James C. Riggs, 58, was charged by the federal grand jury with illegally possessing an unregistered .22 caliber silencer.  In a separate matter, Riggs and three other South-central Alaska men were also charged by the United States Attorney with a violation of the Lacey Act and other crimes in connection with the take and possession of two bull Moose which were illegally taken within Denali National Park in September 2012.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Skrocki, who presented the case to the grand jury,   the silencer was discovered in Riggs’ home while it was being searched in connection with the Denali moose hunt in September 2012.  

Ms. Loeffler commends the National Park Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives for their work in the investigation of this case.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.