CAPE GIRARDEAU – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that 39-year-old Michael Ray Turner of Sikeston, Missouri, was sentenced to serve 123 months in federal prison for the offense of Felon in Possession of a Firearm. Turner appeared for his sentencing hearing today before United States District Judge Stephen R. Clark at the federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
According to court documents, on January 22, 2023, an officer with the Sikeston Police Department was attempting a traffic stop of a black Dodge Durango for failing to signal and invalid vehicle plates. The vehicle traveled a short distance before the driver pulled over and fled on foot toward the rear of an apartment complex. After a brief chase, the officer apprehended the suspect and identified him as Michael Turner.
A search of Turner’s person revealed no contraband. Suspecting Turner may have concealed something, officers begin searching the area.
Within minutes, an officer located a black Taurus pistol on a balcony or rooftop surface of the apartment building. Although it was lightly raining, the pistol was dry to the touch.
The firearm was loaded with an extended capacity magazine containing 16 rounds of ammunition, with an additional round in the chamber.
Turner’s Dodge Durango was searched and an identical extended capacity magazine, also loaded with 16 rounds of ammunition, was seized form the cup-holder on the driver side of the vehicle.
Turner has a previous felony conviction for Robbery in the Second Degree in New Madrid County, Missouri, and is therefore prohibited from possessing firearms.
This case was investigated by the Sikeston Department of Public Safety. Assistant United States Attorney Julie Hunter handled the prosecution for the government.