Hattiesburg Man Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing a Stolen Firearm

Hattiesburg, Miss. – Ulric S. Crossland, 27, of Hattiesburg, pled guilty Monday before U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett to being a convicted felon in possession of a stolen firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Freeze with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

On July 17, 2017, in Lamar County, Crossland was arrested for being a convicted felon in possession of firearms. He was arrested at an apartment he was using during a search conducted by the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, City of Hattiesburg Police and the Probation Division of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Crossland was found in possession of the following three firearms: a Romarm/Cugir 7.62x39 mm caliber rifle (with a high capacity magazine); a Taurus 9mm pistol, and a Glock .40 caliber pistol. Crossland knew that both the Taurus and Glock pistols were stolen. The Glock had been stolen from a Mississippi Department of Corrections Probation Officer. Crossland was under active supervision by Mississippi State Probation at the time of his arrest. Additionally, methamphetamine belonging to Crossland was found.

On November 2, 2017, in Forrest County, Crossland was arrested again for being a felon in possession of a firearm. During a multi-agency city-wide detail in Hattiesburg, regarding on-going gang activity in the local area, agents of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, the Metro Narcotics Team, and a Mississippi Department of Corrections Probation Officer were conducting a security check of the Executive Inn Motel. Agents encountered Crossland (who was on probation) standing in the parking lot outside a vehicle with two other men in the car. Agents smelled burnt marijuana, and arrested Crossland for being a convicted felon in possession of a Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol. Previously, Crossland had been convicted of felony "possession of a controlled substance (cocaine) while in possession of a firearm."

Crossland will be sentenced by Judge Starrett on September 6, 2018, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Southeast Mississippi Safe Streets Task Force in Hattiesburg, which is made up of special agents from the FBI and law enforcement officers from the Office of the Mississippi State Auditor, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and Hattiesburg Police Department with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Harris.