Jury convicts Minneapolis man for illegal machine gun possession

A federal jury in Minnesota convicted a Minneapolis man of illegally possessing a machine gun, the Justice Department said.

Amiir Mawlid Ali, 19, was arrested after officers found the weapon during a traffic stop as he was on his way to a high school graduation, according to court documents and evidence presented at trial. Ali attempted to flee during the stop but was apprehended before he could escape.

Officers found a firearm equipped with a machine gun conversion device — known as a “switch” — and an extended magazine loaded with more than 30 rounds, prosecutors said. A firearms expert testified at trial that the weapon fired 15 bullets in two seconds.

The conversion device transforms a legal semi-automatic firearm into an illegal machine gun, according to the Justice Department.

“This defendant possessed an extremely dangerous weapon — a machine gun created by the application of a device known as a switch that converts a legal firearm to an illegal one,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Illegal weapons like this are unduly dangerous and offer nothing legitimate in a law abiding society. The Criminal Division will continue to prosecute illegal firearms offenses like this one to keep communities safe.”

Christopher D. Dotson, special agent in charge of the FBI Minneapolis Field Office, said the verdict makes clear that possession of a firearm modified to function as a machine gun will not be tolerated. He credited local, state and federal law enforcement partners for their assistance in the case.

The jury convicted Ali on one count of possession of a machine gun. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, the Justice Department said. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. No sentencing date has been set.