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Press Release

Greenwood Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of a Firearm

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of South Carolina

Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Victor G. Dearing, age 35, of Greenwood, pled guilty in federal court in Anderson, to possession of a firearm by a felon, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g).  United States District Judge Timothy M. Cain, of Anderson, accepted the plea and will impose sentence after he has reviewed the presentence report which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that on May 25, 2017, Greenwood City police officers received a tip that there was a subject with a gun selling heroin on Marion Avenue.  They went to investigate and saw Dearing in the immediate area.  They approached Dearing to speak with him and he ran. The officers pursued him and noticed that he appeared to being reaching for something inside his coat pocket.  Dearing eventually got tangled in briars and underbrush as he tried to escape in the woods.  The officers detained him and discovered that Dearing had a 9 mm handgun and ammunition as well as marijuana and 8.8 grams of heroin. 

Ms. Drake stated the maximum penalty Dearing can receive is a fine of $250,000 and/or imprisonment for 10 years, three years of supervised release, plus a special assessment of $100.

The case was investigated by agents of the Greenwood City Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Bill Watkins of the Greenville office handled the case.

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Contact

Lance Crick (864) 282-2105

Updated December 20, 2017

Topic
Firearms Offenses