Lumberton Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Firearms Offense

NEW BERN, N.C. – A Lumberton man was sentenced today to 180 months in prison for possessing a firearm while being a prohibited person.  On January 20, 2021, Ledger Lynn Hammonds, Jr. pled guilty to a Criminal Information, which charged Possession of a Firearm by a Felon.

According to court documents and other information presented in court, Hammonds, 44, was the subject of multiple investigations from 2013 through 2017, including several incidents where buffalo belonging to a relative were found deceased after being shot.  On June 28, 2017, investigators executed a search warrant at Hammonds’ residence and recovered two firearms from the bedroom that Hammonds identified as his.  Due to an extensive criminal history that includes qualifying predicate convictions, Hammonds was determined to be an armed career criminal and thereby subject to an enhanced sentence under the provisions of 18 U.S.C. § 924(e).

G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and Robeson County Sheriff’s Office (RCSO) investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Stephany  prosecuted the case.

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.  The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina implements the PSN Program through its 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.

A copy of this press release is located on our website. Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:18-cr-00050-FL.