Richland County Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Unlawful Firearm Possession

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Joseph Nayquan Kelly, 30, of Eastover, was sentenced to more than six years in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence presented to the court showed that on Dec. 28, 2021, Richland County Sheriff's Department deputies conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle for a license plate that came back to another type of vehicle. Kelly was a passenger in the vehicle. During that traffic stop, deputies smelled the odor of marijuana and the driver of the vehicle admitted there was a small amount of marijuana in the car. Deputies searched the vehicle and found approximately 1 pound of marijuana in a shoebox alongside a 9mm pistol with an extended magazine that had been reported stolen. Kelly claimed ownership of that pistol and the marijuana. The court ultimately held him responsible for possession of several other pistols as well as for a reckless vehicle pursuit in other incidents. Kelly is convicted felon and is unable to lawfully possess firearms or ammunition.

United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Smith to 78 months imprisonment, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.

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. Notably, Kelly was a prior participant in the City of Columbia's Project Ceasefire initiative, which works to put at-risk probationers in connection with a variety of social service providers in and around Columbia with the goal of preventing recidivism but also stresses that consequences will be more significant if they choose to re-offend. Kelly's sentence in this case is more than double the length of his longest previous sentence.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Richland County Sheriff's Department, and the Columbia Police Department. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew R. Sanford is prosecuting the case.

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