Security Guard Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing a Firearm

Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on April 29, 2011, Patrick D. Liddell, 40, of Belleville, Illinois, pled guilty to the charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Liddell had previously been convicted on December 28, 1992, of the felony crime of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base. On August 24, 2010, as Liddell was working for KLM Security at a construction site in East St. Louis, he was approached by a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. After some discussion, Liddell admitted to having a firearm underneath his front driver’s seat. An Illinois State Trooper accompanying the agent retrieved a Bersa 380 semi-automatic handgun. The firearm was loaded and chambered with .380 caliber hollowpoint ammunition. An additional magazine with .380 hollow-point ammunition was also found in the vehicle. Liddell faces a penalty of up to 10 years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000.00, or both, and a term of supervised release of up to three years. Sentencing is scheduled for August 12, 2011.

The guilty plea follows an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the WAVE Detail, which is part of the East St. Louis Violent Crime Initiative. The prosecution of the case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin F. Burke.