A federal jury in Benton, Illinois convicted a former Harrisburg resident on five counts of violating the National Firearms Act after approximately 30 minutes of deliberation [1]. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois [1]. The charges survived to trial on three distinct theories: manufacturing unregistered short-barreled rifles, possessing unregistered short-barreled rifles, and possessing unregistered silencers [1].
The jury returned its verdict on June 17, 2026, following a trial that centered on the defendant's manufacture and possession of weapons required to be registered under the NFA but not so registered [1]. The speed of deliberations, roughly half an hour, reflected the documentary and physical nature of NFA prosecutions, which typically turn on registration records rather than contested eyewitness accounts [1]. The government secured convictions on all five counts charged, with no acquittals and no hung counts [1].
Because this was a criminal matter, no damages are at issue. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled, and no sentencing date was reported in the available record [1]. NFA violations carry significant federal exposure: manufacturing an unregistered short-barreled rifle or silencer is a felony punishable by up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 per count under 26 U.S.C. § 5871, meaning the defendant faces potential aggregate exposure across five counts.
No post-trial motions or notice of appeal had been reported as of the verdict date [1]. The prosecution reflects continued federal enforcement attention to illegal weapons manufacturing in southern Illinois, a priority the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois has signaled through prosecutions of this type [1].