Gun Store Owner Loses Federal Firearms License for Selling a Firearm to a Convicted Felon

TULSA, Okla.—James Patrick Okey, 45, was sentenced in federal court for knowingly selling a firearm to a convicted felon announced Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma.  Okey was a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) who owned and operated a gun store, Hunters Choice, located in Sapulpa, Oklahoma.  Okey pleaded guilty on July 1, 2015, to a felony indictment charging him with Sale of a Firearm to a Prohibited Person.

As a result of his conviction, Okey lost his federal firearms license, had to liquidate his inventory and close his business.  Additionally, United States District Court Judge Claire V. Eagan fined Okey $3,000 and placed him on probation for five years.

“FFL’s have a responsibility to the community to sell firearms lawfully and to the right people,” said U.S. Attorney Williams.  “The United States Attorney’s Office is dedicated to making sure that firearms do not end up in the hands of prohibited individuals.”

On May 15, 2014, during the course of an investigation, Okey sold a firearm to a person he knew to be a convicted felon. Convicted felons are prohibited from lawfully possessing a firearm. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neal C. Hong.

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