WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Four men were sentenced this week for various firearms violations, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey.
Tomez Faulkner, 39, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 60 months in prison for the unlawful possession of a firearm. Faulkner was stopped on Interstate 70 in Ohio County for erratic driving. A 9mm pistol was in plain view inside the vehicle. The firearm had been stolen from Corapolis, Pennsylvania. Faulkner is prohibited from having firearms because of an aggravated assault conviction in Pennsylvania.
Steven Wayne Springer, 57, of Proctor, West Virginia, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for the unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition. An off-duty officer observed Springer with a firearm and reported it to the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) because the Springer had a history of disregarding wildlife hunting regulations. A DNR officer, knowing Springer is prohibited from having firearms because of a prior felony drug conviction, visited with Springer, who admitted to having multiple firearms. Law enforcement later executed a search warrant at Springer’s home and seized two rifles, a shotgun, and 96 rounds of various ammunition.
Peter Alexander Ruskin, 52, of Wheeling, West Virginia, was sentenced to 18 months for the unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition. The Marshall County Sheriff’s Department responded to a domestic violence call at Ruskin’s home. Ruskin was hiding in the basement. As officers searched for Ruskin, they found a firearm hidden under a couch in the residence. During a later legal search of his home, officers located multiple rounds of ammunition. Ruskin is prohibited because of prior domestic battery convictions.
Steven Wayne Tubby, 45, of Moundsville, West Virginia, was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison. Tubby was convicted of the unlawful possession of a firearm after he threatened someone with a firearm at his residence. Officers executed a search warrant at Tubby’s residence and found a firearm and ammunition. Tubby is prohibited because of two prior felonies involving assault with a dangerous weapon and wanton endangerment involving a firearm.
Investigative agencies include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; The West Virginia Department of Natural Resources; the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office; the Ohio County Sheriff’s Office; and the Moundsville Police Department.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime, and repel the invasion of illegal immigration.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.
