COLUMBIA, S.C. —Nicholas Vanover, 26, of Columbia, has pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that Vanover had been charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm in a 2022 federal case. After he pled guilty to that felon in possession charge, he was allowed to stay out on bond while awaiting sentencing. While awaiting sentencing, agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives learned that Vanover was continuing to sell marijuana from his apartment.
While on bond and awaiting sentencing for his prior firearm guilty plea, he violated the conditions of his bond by having multiple positive drug tests. Probation officers obtained an arrest warrant for his bond violations and U.S. Marshals served the warrant at Vanover’s apartment. When they entered the apartment, they saw a digital scale with marijuana with several large capacity ammunition magazines. They obtained a search warrant and found a .40 caliber Glock handgun with a drum magazine capable of accepting 50 rounds of ammunition, several extended magazines capable of accepting more than 15 rounds of ammunition, an AK-47 style 7.62×39 mm Century Arms rifle, four large bags containing more than 500 grams of marijuana, approximately $16,000.00 in U.S. currency, a money counter, and a pharmacist-sized (one pint) bottle of codeine cough syrup which had been stolen during a pharmacy robbery in Kershaw County.
Vanover faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. He also faces a fine of up to $250,000, restitution, and five years of supervision to follow the term of imprisonment. United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Vanover after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
This case was investigated by United States Marshals Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the City of Columbia Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney William K. Witherspoon is prosecuting the case.
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