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Press Release

Rapid City Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegal Possession of Firearm

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of South Dakota

United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Rapid City, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person was sentenced on July 29, 2022, by Judge Jeffrey L. Viken, U.S. District Court.

Nathaniel Jones, age 54, was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Jones was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2021 and pleaded guilty on December 17, 2021.  The conviction stems from Jones, who was previously convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence and is prohibited from possessing firearms, knowingly possessing a Taurus, model PTl11 G2c, 9xl9mm Luger caliber, semiautomatic pistol, which was found after Jones came into contact with law enforcement in August 2021 in Rapid City.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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. 

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Rapid City Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Patterson prosecuted the case.

Jones was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

Updated August 5, 2022

Topics
Project Safe Neighborhoods
Firearms Offenses