Bryan County Residents Sentenced For Scheme To Illegally Acquire Firearms

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Nathanial Louis Hughes, age 31, and Rebecca Leann Hughes, age 33, both of Calera, Oklahoma, were sentenced for crimes committed in a scheme to unlawfully buy and sell firearms.

Nathanial Louis Hughes was sentenced to 63 months’ imprisonment for one count of Felon in Possession of Firearm.

Rebecca Hughes was sentenced to 3 years of probation for one count of Conspiracy to Acquire a Firearm from a Licensed Dealer by False and Fictitious Statement.

The charge arose from an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Beginning on June 26, 2024, and continuing until July 21, 2024, Rebecca and Nathanial Hughes conspired to unlawfully acquire firearms from a licensed dealer.  As part of that conspiracy, Rebecca Hughes agreed to purchase firearms on behalf of her husband, Nathanial Hughes, despite knowing that he was a convicted felon.  While purchasing multiple firearms for Nathanial Hughes, Rebecca Hughes presented herself as the actual buyer of the firearms, then affirmed this by marking “YES” on Block 21(a) of ATF Form 4473.  On July 21, 2024, law enforcement discovered Nathanial Hughes unlawfully in possession of those firearms despite knowing himself to have previously been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment of more than one year.

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 gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

The Honorable John F. Heil, III, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearings.  Nathanial Hughes will self-report to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility on January 2, 2026, to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan E. Soverly represented the United States.