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2 men, both convicted felons, charged with possession of firearms

Posted at 1:01 PM, Nov 23, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-23 13:02:05-05

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A federal grand jury charged two Hampton Roads men with being felons in possession of firearms.

According to court documents, Mark E. Monroe, 48, of Newport News, came into contact with Newport News Police as an occupant of a vehicle parked in an apartment complex. When officers approached the vehicle, Monroe rolled the window down and officers immediately noticed a firearm on the seat under Monroe’s leg.

Monroe was previously convicted of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, and was prohibited from possessing a firearm.

In a separate indictment, Sequia Kerr, 43, of Yorktown, came into contact with Newport News Police after two men reported that Kerr brandished a firearm and ran toward them.

Officers recovered a firearm hidden in a trashcan at the scene, and Kerr admitted that he put the firearm in the trashcan when he learned that officers were coming.

Each man is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, and if convicted each faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

“Convicted felons who possess firearms present a significant danger to the safety of our law enforcement partners and the communities they serve,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “We will continue to aggressively pursue those who have forfeited their Second Amendment rights due to felony conviction. Together with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners we are committed to removing illegally possessed firearms from our streets.”