El Dorado Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Use of a Firearm Related to Drug Trafficking and Other Offenses 

EL DORADO, AR—Conner Eldridge, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Edwin Ross, age 32 of El Dorado, Arkansas, was sentenced yesterday for being a felon in possession of a firearm, drug trafficking, and the use of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Ross was sentenced to 10 years in prison with four years of supervised release. United States District Judge Susan O. Hickey presided over the sentencing in El Dorado, Arkansas. Ross pleaded guilty to the offenses on March 12, 2012.

According to court records, on June 6, 2012, Ross conducted a sale of over six grams of marijuana to a confidential informant with the El Dorado Police Department. On July 6, 2011, law enforcement executed a search of Ross’s residence and discovered $787 in cash, two cases of bullets, marijuana paraphernalia, a handgun, and two rifles. One of the rifles had a defaced serial number. Upon the arrival of law enforcement, Ross attempted to flee but was arrested. Ross was previously convicted of the felonies of conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance and residential burglary out of Union County, Arkansas.

United States Attorney Eldridge stated, “We remain committed to investigating and prosecuting felons in possession of firearms, especially when such firearms are used in furtherance of another crime.  We must do all we can to keep our communities safe from violence, drug trafficking, and other criminal activity.”

This case was investigated by the El Dorado Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross prosecuted the case for the United States.