Richland County Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing a Firearm

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Shondel Antwan Crim, 48, of Columbia, was sentenced to 8 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence presented to the Court showed that Richland County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the home of a shooting victim.  The victim stated that she and Crim had stopped dating.  She saw him at a gas station, and they talked, and he tried to rekindle the relationship.  She declined and left the gas station.  Crim followed her and fired into her car at least 2 times striking her car.  An arrest warrant was issued for Crim. 

A week later, the police see Crim at another gas station and arrest him.  They found a 9mm Glock pistol in a holster inside his waistband.  A search warrant was issued for his house where they found 9mm ammunition along with a small amount of crack cocaine.

Crim was taken to police headquarters where he admitted that the gun found on him was the one, he had during the shooting.  Crim was prohibited from possessing a firearm based upon convictions for possession of crack, possession of a stolen car, possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute in proximity of a school, possession with the intent to distribute crack cocaine 2nd offense, and burglary 2nd offense.

United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Crim to 96 months (8 years) imprisonment, to be followed by a 3-year term of court-ordered supervision.  There is no parole in the federal system.   

This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Richland County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney William K. Witherspoon prosecuted the case.

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