McCurtain County Resident Pleads Guilty To Illegally Possessing A Firearm

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Kendall James Hopper, age 61, of Smithville, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Felon in Possession of Firearm, punishable by up to fifteen years in prison and a $250,000.00 fine.

The Indictment charged Hopper with knowingly possessing one lever-action rifle on January 2, 2024, after having been previously convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year imprisonment.

The charge arose from an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Choctaw Nation Lighthorse Police, and the LeFlore County Sheriff’s Office.

The Honorable D. Edward Snow, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.

A U.S. District Court Judge will determine the sentence to be imposed after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Hopper will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Geizura represented the United States.