Five people have been indicted for firearms violations, including one from Mansfield, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.
Indicted are: Marriece L. Ellis, 25, and Warren J. McCray, Jr., 23, both of Akron; Shauntare Davis, 31, of Warren; Frank Arthur Thompson, III, 45, of Conneaut, and James D. Butler, 55, of Mansfield.
Ellis and McCray were charged with being felons in possession of firearm. They were arrested by Akron police officers investigating a report of shots fired on Oct. 22, 2018. Ellis was found to have a loaded Glock 9mm pistol despite a prior conviction for having a weapon while under disability. McCray was found to have a Wesson Arms .44-caliber pistol despite prior convictions for tampering with evidence and carrying concealed weapons, according to court records.
Davis is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was arrested by Warren Police Department after officers responded to a call of armed man making threats on Oct. 21, 2017. He was found to have shotgun ammunition despite prior convictions for aggravated robbery and felonious assault, according to court records.
Thompson is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. He possessed a Mossberg .22-caliber rifle and 592 rounds of ammunition in August 2017 despite a prior conviction for possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, according to the indictment.
Butler is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. Butler, on Aug. 24, 2017, possessed a Walther 9 mm pistol and ammunition despite prior convictions for robbery and burglary, according to the indictment.
Butler was arrested after the owner of Madison Sporting Arms in Mansfield complained Butler stole the firearm from his store and showed a police officer video surveillance that recorded the theft, according to court documents.
These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Toepfer, Mark S. Bennett and Aaron P. Howell following investigations by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Akron Police Department (Ellis and McCray), Warren Police Department and Ohio Adult Parole Authority (Davis), North Kingsville Police Department (Thompson) and the Mansfield Police Department (Butler).
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Source: Department of Justice, US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio
