CHARLOTESVILLE, Va. – A Winchester, Virginia man, who lied when he purchased a firearm that was later used by a close relative in a Southeast D.C. homicide, pleaded guilty today in federal court.
Gerald Kendrick Oxner, 25, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today to a one-count Information charging him with making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm.
According to court documents, Oxner lied when he purchased a Smith and Wesson 9-millimeter handgun in January 2021 by not disclosing that he was purchasing the weapon for someone other than himself as well as providing a false home address on the required forms. Investigators obtained security camera footage and receipts from the store in Front Royal, Virginia, which show Oxner buying the firearm and using his close relative’s debit card to make the purchase.
Law enforcement later recovered the firearm in Maryland, but its serial number had been obliterated. Through forensic analysis, the serial number was restored, and the firearm was linked to evidence recovered from the scene of a January 25, 2021 shooting in Southeast Washington D.C. where one person was killed and three others were injured. Oxner’s relative was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in connection with the shooting.
Oxner further admitted that he made multiple other straw purchases in Virginia, however, when law enforcement executed a search warrant at his residence, none of the firearms or related ammunition that he purchased were found in his possession or in the residence. Subsequently, another one of the firearms he bought was found during the execution of an unrelated search warrant in Washington, D.C.
United States Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh and Charlie J. Patterson, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, made the announcement.
Oxner faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melanie Smith and Katie B. Medearis are prosecuting the case.