EAST ST. LOUIS – A district judge has sentenced a Centralia man to just over 10 years in federal prison for possessing three firearms as a convicted felon in three separate incidents with police.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Illinois, 33-year-old Lamar R. Bennett pleaded guilty in July to three counts of felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents, Bennett was convicted as a felon in possession of a firearm in Marion County Circuit Court in 2020, further barring him from legally possessing firearms.
Bennett was the driver of a vehicle in a single-car crash in Washington County on April 21, 2023. Following the accident, Bennett placed a Smith and Wesson 9-millimeter pistol behind a concrete barrier on the side of the highway. Law enforcement recovered the firearm.
On Oct. 14, 2023, emergency personnel and law enforcement responded to Bennett’s residence in Jefferson County. Officers observed a Glock 43X pistol in his sweatshirt and recovered the firearm.
On Nov. 23, 2023, law enforcement tried to conduct a traffic stop on Bennett’s vehicle in Marion County, but he fled. Ultimately, Bennett was apprehended and law enforcement recovered one Ruger SR9C pistol from him.
Following imprisonment, Bennett will serve three years of supervised release.
The FBI Springfield Field Office, Centralia Police Department and Washington County Sheriff’s Office contributed to the investigation.
