Boone County Convicted Felon Sentenced For Federal Firearm Crime
Friday, January 17, 2025, 12:30 P.M. ET. 1 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
CHARLESTON, W.VA.- A 40-year-old Bim, West Virginia man who was convicted in November 2003 for violently robbing a 65-year-old wheelchair-bound man inside his home was sentenced yesterday to federal prison in connection with possessing a firearm in 2023, knowing he was prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm.
On Thursday, January 16, 2025, Billy Ray Castle, 40, of Bim, West Virginia, appeared in the U.S. District for the Southern District of West Virginia and was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Court Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr., to 30 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on being a Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm, Convicted Felon.
According To Documents Filed With The Court
According to U.S. Attorney Will Thompson and documents filed with the District Court, on July 24, 2023, Castle fired three rounds from a Beretta 9mm handgun into the ceiling of a Bim, West Virginia residence and a fourth round out the open door of the residence.
Responding Police Officers arrested Castle and seized the Baretta, a Sig Sauer 40-caliber handgun, and a Marlin 308-caliber rifle from Castle, who possessed all three firearms.
Castle knew he was banned from owning or possessing firearms and ammunition due to his prior felony conviction for robbery in Boone County Circuit Court in November 2003. In that criminal conviction, Castle and others violently robbed an elderly wheelchair-bound person inside their home.
