Springfield rapper pleads guilty to weapons charges

(From the U. S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri)

A Springfield, Mo., man who was part of a local rap group pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally possessing firearms, one of which has been linked to several recent shootings.

Jardell Carlin Williams, 19, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to two counts of being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm.

By pleading guilty today, Williams admitted he was in possession of a Glock .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol when a vehicle, in which he was a passenger, was stopped by Springfield, Mo., Police Department detectives on Feb. 15, 2022.

Williams also admitted that he was in possession of a C3 Defense 5.56-caliber semi-automatic pistol when a vehicle, in which he was a passenger, was stopped by detectives with the Greene County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department on Oct. 23, 2022. According to the plea agreement, the AR-style pistol was tentatively identified as having been used in three shooting incidents in the Kansas City, Mo., and Kansas City, Kansas, areas.

Williams admitted to regularly smoking marijuana, which remains a controlled substance under federal law, since he was in high school. He estimated that he smoked about a gram of marijuana each day.

Under federal statutes, Williams is subject to a sentence of up to 25 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Greene County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department.