Lee Ann Roberts, a 43-year-old woman from Altamonte Springs, has entered a guilty plea for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon, as well as for owning unregistered machine guns and silencers. In a case that highlights ongoing concerns about illegal firearms, Roberts could be facing a steep sentence—up to 15 years for the firearms charge and an additional 10 for the unregistered weapons, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Driving the white sedan where officers later found the illegal arms cache, Roberts was stopped by authorities following a tip. Upon questioning, and with the certainty of the vehicle containing at least one gun, she self-identified as a felon, preventing her from firearms possession. A subsequent search conducted by the Altamonte Springs Police and ATF agents uncovered a hunting rifle, modified AR-platform receivers considered machineguns under federal law, three silencers, and an array of tactical gear and ammunition.
The investigation dug deeper into Roberts' activities via her phone, uncovering attempts and completed sales of various firearms, some of which matched the arsenal seized from her vehicle. This case, now in the hands of Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Varadan, is a part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). The DOJ's initiative aims to curb gun violence by promoting collaboration within communities and ensuring a strategic and results-measured approach to enforcement, in the spirit of making neighborhoods safer for everyone.
Details from the Department of Justice's press release disclose that none of the machineguns or silencers found were registered to Roberts in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, a violation compounded by her previous felon status. Her past, marred by convictions, now stares down the barrel of a long federal prison sentence.
