Source: Office of United States Attorneys
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Billy Ray Castle Jr., 40, of Bim, was sentenced today to two years and six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 24, 2023, Castle fired three rounds from a Beretta Pietro SPA Model APX 9mm pistol into the ceiling of a Bim-area residence in Boone County and a fourth round out the open door of the residence. Responding law enforcement seized the Beretta, a Sig Sauer model P250 .40-caliber pistol and a Marlin Firearms Co. model X7 .308-caliber rifle at the residence. Castle possessed all three firearms.
Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Castle knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony conviction for robbery in Boone County Circuit Court on November 18, 2003. In that offense, Castle and others violently robbed a 65-year-old person who uses a wheelchair in the person’s home in 2002.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Boone County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy B. Wolfe and former Assistant United States Attorney Troy D. Adams prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-71.
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