Clarksburg man sentenced for firearm offenses

CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Christopher Plaugher, of Clarksburg, Virginia, was sentenced today to 24 months incarceration for making false statements in purchasing a firearm, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.

Plaugher, age 26, pled guilty to two counts of “False Statement During the Purchase of a Firearm.” He admitted to falsely representing that he was the actual buyer of four pistols when he was actually attempting to purchase the firearms on behalf of another buyer. The crimes occurred in October 2014 and January 2015 in Harrison County.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Perri prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Greater Harrison Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated. 

Senior U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided.