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Press Release

Attempted Illegal AK-47 Purchaser Sentenced To 5 Years

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Florida

Jacksonville, FL- U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard yesterday sentenced Antwan Cameron (29, Jacksonville) to 5 years in federal prison for making a false statement to a federally licensed firearms dealer. A federal jury found Cameron guilty on October 17, 2012.

According to testimony presented at trial, Cameron attempted to purchase a Century Arms 7.62 x 39mm rifle from Shooters Firearms and Accessories of Jacksonville. Cameron lied on the required ATF paperwork and claimed that he had never been convicted of a domestic violence offense. A background check by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) confirmed that Cameron was a prohibited person and employees at Shooters stopped the sale. Cameron received a higher sentence after Judge Howard found that he obstructed justice by attempting to contact one of the trial jurors through Facebook.

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Gun Crime Unit and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Talbot.

It is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy led by ATF. United States Attorney Robert E. O’Neill, along with Julie Torres, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Updated January 26, 2015