Greenville Man Sentenced for Felon in Possession of Firearm Offense

RALEIGH – The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that today, PRESTON BULLOCK, 40, of Greenville, North Carolina, was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever III to a total of 84 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release.

BULLOCK was named in a one-count Indictment on January 10, 2018.  On May 29, 2018, BULLOCK pled guilty to felon in possession of a firearm.

On June 11, 2017, officers with the Pinetops Police Department in Pinetops, North Carolina received a call regarding a domestic dispute with a female and BULLOCK. The female said BULLOCK had threatened her with a firearm.  When officers arrived at the home, BULLOCK was observed running down the street and hiding next to an occupied car.  Officers approached the vehicle, spoke with the occupants in the vehicle, instructed them to exit.   BULLOCK placed a handgun inside his waistband.  BULLOCK was then arrested.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

This case is part of the United States Attorney’s Office’s Take Back North Carolina Initiative.  This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices on a sustained basis in those communities to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.

The investigation of this case was conducted by the Pinetops Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Assistant United States Attorney S. Katherine Burnette handled the prosecution of this case for the government.