Barbour County Man Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison Following Federal Firearm and Explosive Device Convictions
Montgomery, Alabama – On Wednesday, May 27, 2020, Bobby Wayne Williams, a 45-year-old resident of Clio, Alabama, was sentenced to 63 months in prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of an explosive device, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Following his prison sentence, he will serve three years of supervised release.
According to court records, on September 19, 2018, detectives from the Barbour County and Dale County Sheriff’s Offices were investigating the robbery of a Dale County man. Information provided by the victim led them to Williams’ residence in Barbour County. When law enforcement went to talk to Williams at his home, he tried to flee but was immediately apprehended. When he was taken into custody, officers discovered Williams had a handgun in his pocket. Afterwards, law enforcement obtained a search warrant for his house and they found seven more firearms inside his bedroom. Williams is a convicted felon and is prohibited from possessing the firearms.
Later, on March 19, 2019, while investigating a homicide involving another suspect, Dale County detectives discovered a destructive device that was built from a modified training grenade that had been wrapped with metal shrapnel secured in place with tape. They requested assistance from ATF to analyze the device and discovered that Williams’ fingerprint was on the tape used to make the device.
Williams was initially indicted by a federal grand jury for being a felon in possession of eight firearms in March of 2019 and he has been in federal custody since April 9, 2019. After the second investigation linked him to the explosive device, he was charged for that crime in October 2019. He pleaded guilty to both charges on January 2, 2020.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Barbour County Sheriff’s Office, and the Dale County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Russell Duraski prosecuted the case.
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