Benton Harbor Man Sentenced To 100 Months In Federal Prison For Illegal Firearm Possession

Federal Jury Found Defendant Guilty Following Trial on Felon in Possession Charge

          GRAND RAPIDS – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that Lamon Tirell Turner, 47, of Benton Harbor, was sentenced to 100 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Turner has many prior violent convictions including assault, unarmed robbery, domestic violence, and assault on a police officer.

          “Gun violence inflict tremendous harm on our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “My office is committed to stopping the proliferation of illegal guns flooding our communities. We will use all our tools and partnerships to hold offenders driving gun violence accountable and keep our communities safe.”

          Investigators executed a search warrant at an apartment where Turner was staying.  Officers located a firearm hidden underneath a couch, adjacent to where Turner was sleeping. Turner’s wallet was within feet of the weapon. Subsequent DNA analysis confirmed Turner’s DNA was present on the firearm.

          The recovered firearm was determined to be the last one recovered of 123 firearms stolen during a November 16, 2023, robbery of Dunham's sporting goods store in Benton Harbor. With this recovery, law enforcement has now successfully located all firearms taken during that robbery.

          The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department investigated this case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexis Sanford and Constance Turnbull represented the United States at trial.

          This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement, and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. For more information, visit www.justice.gov/psn.

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