EVANSVILLE, Ind (WEHT) – An Evansville man was sentenced to 7 years and 8 months in federal prison on Monday after pleading guilty to illegal possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon.
According to court documents, Indiana State Police initiated a traffic stop of Roy L. Durham Jr, 37, at an Evansville gas station on June 6, 2020. Court documents say Durham reached for a handgun tucked inside the driver’s side door handle as the trooper approached the vehicle. Authorities say the trooper drew his weapon and commanded Durham to show his hands, but Durham exited the vehicle and fled on foot.
Durham has prior felony convictions in state court for unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious felon in 2019 and for dealing methamphetamine in 2016. These convictions prohibit Durham from possessing firearms by federal law.
A release from the Department of Justice says the trooper inventoried Durham’s vehicle and recovered the following:
- Five fully loaded firearms
- Three 9mm magazines
- Assorted ammunition
- A gun holster
- A laser sight for a firearm
- 49 grams of synthetic marijuana
- A digital scale
- Small plastic baggies
- 13 cellphones
- Three laptops
- $1,530 in cash.
As part of the sentence, U.S. District Judge Richard L. Young ordered that Durham be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for three years following his release from federal prison.
