Felon Convicted of Illegally Possessing Guns

A convicted felon suspected of selling guns to street gang members and drug dealers was found guilty in Los Angeles federal court Thursday of 10 counts of illegally possessing firearms.

Testimony in the trial tied Willie Edward Harris, 47, to the sale of a gun that was used in a drug-related murder in 1988, according to Inglewood police.

Besides his conviction on the 10 charges of being a felon in possession of firearms, Harris was found guilty of possession of nearly 300 rounds of ammunition. Each of the 11 convictions carries a maximum prison sentence of up to 10 years. He was acquitted on three counts of illegally possessing firearms.

Testimony in the trial indicated that Harris, who had previously been convicted of three felonies involving firearms, used women acquaintances to legally purchase handguns which he in turn sold.

Testimony indicated that Harris sold the weapons at weekend gun shows and to individuals who gave him money to obtain the firearms, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. Jeffrey Johnson.

Inglewood Police Detective Russ Enyeart told The Times that a pair of convicted armed robbers on parole used a gun traced to Harris in a drug-connected murder in Inglewood in May, 1988. Enyeart said that a 9-millimeter semiautomatic handgun used in the killing was traced to Jacqueline Anderson, who had bought it for Harris.

Enyeart said Harris admitted selling the gun, but denied that he sold it to either of the men who subsequently pleaded guilty to the Inglewood murder.

Harris is scheduled to be sentenced April 23 and is free on an unsecured $10,000 bond.

Federal firearms agents arrested Harris in December in Los Angeles.

Harris’ firearms dealings have been a focus of interest of federal and local law enforcement officers for years. He was arrested May 5, 1985, by Pomona police for illegally selling a handgun at a gun show at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, a misdemeanor.

Pomona police found that Harris had been convicted of assault with a deadly weapon involving a pistol in 1978. He had also been convicted of lewd acts with a child under 14 in 1971.

Pomona police served a search warrant on Harris’ home in Los Angeles and discovered two more handguns, a blackjack and a billy club. Harris subsequently pleaded no contest to three counts of a felon in possession of firearms and two counts of possession of illegal weapons, all felonies. He was placed on unsupervised probation.

In the meantime, Harris was under suspicion by federal authorities and Los Angeles police of selling weapons to street gang members and drug dealers.

Harris subsequently agreed to cooperate with federal authorities investigating another case involving guns being smuggled out of the country, authorities said. But Harris allegedly maintained his own gun trafficking operations even as he cooperated with authorities, according to federal agents.