A Memphis man has been slapped with a five-year sentence after getting caught red-handed with an illegal stash of firearm conversion kits. Roosevelt Wilson, 43, won't be seeing freedom anytime soon following his sentencing by a federal judge to 60 months behind bars for his ill-advised collection of 25 “switch” devices, gadgets notorious for turning regular guns into rapid-fire machine guns, according to a release from United States Attorney Kevin Ritz.
These switches don't play around, when attached to a semi-automatic firearm, they crank up the weapon's firepower to that of a fully automatic gun, letting off bullets as fast as the trigger can be squeezed and Wilson's bid for firepower supremacy hit a wall when U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents intercepted a suspicious overseas package addressed to him, inside were the illicit devices.
Law enforcement conducted a controlled delivery on February 28, 2023, only for Wilson to grab the package and lead the cops on a wild high-speed chase through Memphis' quiet streets, during which he cast the package and a gun, a .40 caliber unmarked Glock-style pistol fitted with one of these switches, out his window, both later found decorating his escape route, the U.S. Attorney's Office reported.
Wilson has pleaded guilty to possession of and receiving the illegal conversion devices that had been smuggled into the country on January 12. On April 25, United States District Judge Thomas L. Parker laid down the law, dishing out Wilson's prison term to be followed by three years of supervised release.
The successful collar and subsequent sentencing is a feather in the cap for Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Southaven Police Department, and the United States Marshals Service all of which pooled their resources to bring Wilson to justice. Assistant United States Attorney Eileen Kuo, who flexed her legal muscles prosecuting this case, and U.S. Attorney Kevin Ritz both came away with well-earned kudos for their roles in the operation.
