Federal Jury Finds South Charleston Man Guilty of Gun Crime

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A federal jury convicted Paul William Martin, 34, of South Charleston, yesterday after a two-day trial, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. The jury found Martin guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm on October 12, 2018.

“Martin had a laundry list of previous state and federal felony convictions,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  “Achieving convictions in felon in possession cases is critical to public safety by keeping guns out of the wrong hands. I want to thank the investigators and my prosecutors for their exemplary work in this case.”   

Martin was previously indicted on being a felon in possession of a firearm due to previous convictions for possession of a stolen vehicle, forgery, daytime burglary, and fraudulent use of an access device in Kanawha County, West Virginia.  Martin also had a previous federal conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm in the Southern District of West Virginia.  At trial, evidence revealed Jason Buzzard had picked up Martin at the Sheetz gas station in order to sell him firearms.  Martin and Buzzard were stopped by officers with the South Charleston Police Department, who were able to locate and recover a .25 semi-automatic handgun and a .22 caliber revolver.   

Buzzard pled guilty on September 23, 2019, and faces up to ten years in prison when sentenced on January 6, 2020.  Martin faces up to ten years in prison when sentenced on March 11, 2020.    

The investigation was conducted by the South Charleston Police Department with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).  

United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the trial.  Assistant United States Attorneys L. Alexander Hamner and Andrew Tessman handled the prosecution.

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