Carlsbad Man Pleads Guilty to Violating Federal Firearms Laws

ALBUQUERQUE – Mia Coy Campbell, 33, of Carlsbad, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to violating the federal firearms laws by unlawfully possessing a firearm.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Campbell will be sentenced to 60 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

Campbell was arrested on Sept. 24, 2015, on a criminal complaint charging him with unlawfully possessing a firearm on July 30 and 31, 2015, in Eddy and Chaves Counties, N.M.  According to the complaint, law enforcement officers found an assault rifle, which Campbell allegedly used to shoot at an occupied residence in Carlsbad, when they executed a search warrant at a residence in Roswell, N.M.

Campbell was indicted in Oct. 2015, and charged with unlawfully possessing a firearm in Eddy County on Aug. 4, 2015.  The indictment was superseded in Feb. 2016, to charge Campbell with two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm based on his possession of firearms on July 31, 2015 and Aug. 4, 2015, and one count of unlawfully possessing a machinegun on July 31, 2015.  Campbell was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of his prior felony convictions for possession of methamphetamine and escape of a prisoner. 

During today’s proceedings, Campbell entered a guilty plea to the superseding indictment.  In entering the guilty plea, Campbell admitted that on July 30 and 31, 2015, he possessed an assault rifle, which is considered a machinegun under federal law.  Campbell also admitted that on Aug. 4, 2015, he unlawfully possessed a pistol.  Campbell acknowledged that he was prohibited from possessing firearms because of his status as a convicted felon. 

Campbell remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. 

Campbell also is awaiting sentencing in another federal case in which a federal jury convicted him in March 2016, of being a felon in possession of a firearm.  In that case, the jury found Campbell guilty of unlawfully possessing a firearm in Eddy County on Sept. 24, 2015.  Campbell faces a statutory maximum penalty of ten years in prison.

This case was investigated by the Roswell office of the FBI and the Carlsbad Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Randy M. Castellano and John A. Balla of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the case.