Three men from El Dorado, Arkansas, have been sentenced in the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas for possession of machineguns, in violation of federal law. The sentencing followed investigations by the El Dorado Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
On April 24, 2022, officers with the El Dorado Police Department executed a search warrant at an apartment complex in El Dorado to locate a wanted individual, Mark Oliver Wade, 23, of El Dorado. During the search, officers discovered one stolen firearm and one firearm that had been converted to fire in fully automatic mode. For his involvement, U.S. District Court Judge Susan O. Hickey sentenced Wade to 33 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
On March 29, 2023, El Dorado police initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle in the city. During the stop, they encountered Markayleo Alonzo James, 22, also of El Dorado. James was found to be in possession of a firearm that had been converted to fully automatic mode. Judge Hickey sentenced James to 24 months in federal prison, with an additional three years of supervised release.
Then, on May 23, 2023, another traffic stop led to the arrest of Inshiqaq Qalam Qiyama II, 23, of El Dorado. Officers found Qiyama in possession of a firearm converted to fire automatically. He was sentenced by Judge Hickey to 27 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes commented on the case, emphasizing the dangers posed by firearms converted to fully automatic mode, “Glock switches and other automatic weapon conversion kits create a significant danger to both law enforcement officers and innocent civilians.”
“These conversion devices are simple to make and sell but are capable of changing ordinary handguns and rifles into incredibly dangerous fully automatic weapons. These weapons are hard to control and can cause massive property damage and potential loss of life. With these weapons, even civilians in their homes are in danger from the numerous, uncontrolled rounds fired using conversion kits. These cases send an important message to our communities: we will continue to investigate and prosecute individuals in possession of illegal automatic weapons and conversion kits. Keeping our communities safe is the most important part of our mission in Western Arkansas,” Fowlkes said.
The cases were part of an ongoing effort to target illegal gun trafficking and violent crime. The investigations were carried out by the El Dorado Police Department’s Criminal Investigations and Crime Analysis Divisions, alongside the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Briana Robbins and Trent Daniels prosecuted the cases as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF aims to disrupt and dismantle the most dangerous criminal organizations threatening the United States.
This prosecution underscores the commitment of law enforcement to keep communities safe and to continue holding individuals accountable for illegally possessing dangerous weapons.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI