Jacksonville Man Sentenced To Federal Prison For Unlawfully Possessing A Machinegun

Jacksonville, Florida - United States District Judge Wendy M. Berger has sentenced Mar'Kesie Williams (28, Jacksonville) to 18 months in federal prison, followed by 36 months of supervised release, for possessing a machinegun. Williams entered a guilty plea on June 28, 2024.

According to court documents, on March 6, 2023, a property manager at an apartment complex in Jacksonville reported that while cleaning a vacant apartment they discovered Williams inside, armed with a firearm. Officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff's responded to the apartment complex, arrested Williams, and located the firearm on top of a mattress. Williams subsequently admitted to possessing the firearm, which was a loaded Glock pistol equipped with a Glock switch. A Glock switch is a device that converts a semi-automatic Glock pistol into a fully automatic machinegun. Federal law prohibits the possession of machineguns and Glock switches.

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Cannizzaro.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.