October 9, 2014

Beloit Man Charged with Gun Crime

MADISON, WI—A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin, sitting in Madison, has returned the following indictment today. You are advised that a charge is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

Joshua Gillespie, 24, Beloit, Wis., is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. The indictment alleges that on October 8, 2014, he possessed a .357 caliber revolver.

If convicted, Gillespie faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. The charge against him is the result of an investigation by the GROC Safe Streets Task Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.GROC (pronounced gee-rock) is a task force formed through the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Safe Streets Violent Crime Initiative, to address gang and drug-related violence in Rock County through the coordination of investigations among local and federal law enforcement agencies. Its members include the FBI, Rock County Sheriff’s Department, and Beloit Police Department. The prosecution of this case will be handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rita M. Rumbelow.