Springfield Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Illegal Firearm

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm.

Roderick E. Hebert, 54, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Hebert was sentenced as an armed career criminal due to his prior felony convictions.

On Feb. 10, 2022, Hebert pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Hebert was stopped for speeding by a Springfield police officer on Nov. 16, 2019. At the time, Hebert had active warrants for his arrest. When he got out of his vehicle, a magazine containing .40-caliber ammunition fell out of the vehicle. Officers then searched Hebert’s vehicle and found a .40-caliber Hi Point pistol.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Hebert has 11 felony convictions, including multiple convictions for burglary and drug-related offenses. At the time of his arrest, Hebert was on state parole from convictions for forgery and possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Casey Clark and Shannon Kempf. It was investigated by the Springfield, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.