A Springfield, Missouri man has been sentenced to 150 months in federal prison without parole for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Kenneth Terrell Jones, 58, received the sentence from United States District Court Judge Beth Phillips and will also serve three years of supervised release.
The case began on August 15, 2024, when a Springfield Police Department officer stopped an SUV with no license plates. During the stop, the officer saw a baggie containing suspected controlled substances. A search of the vehicle uncovered a Taurus PT111 Millennium G2 pistol—previously reported stolen out of St. Louis—as well as additional controlled substances including methamphetamine and heroin. Jones later admitted to officers that both the firearm and drugs were his and said he had purchased the gun from someone he knew only by an alias.
Federal law prohibits individuals convicted of felonies from possessing firearms or ammunition. Jones has prior convictions for burglary, unlawful use of a weapon, second-degree robbery, rape, hindering prosecution of a felony, felony stealing, felony possession of controlled substances, felony resisting arrest, tampering with a motor vehicle, and receiving stolen property.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Wan prosecuted the case after investigations by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Springfield Police Department.
“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.”
The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri supports outreach programs aimed at addressing issues such as violent crime and drug trafficking (official website). The office handles federal prosecutions across 66 counties in western Missouri (official website) with locations in Kansas City, Jefferson City and Springfield (official website). Its jurisdiction stretches from Iowa to Arkansas borders north-south and covers much of western Missouri east-west (official website). The office collaborates with various law enforcement partners at multiple levels (official website) as part of its affiliation with the U.S. Department of Justice (official website).
