Jacob Lloyd Lower, a 31-year-old resident of Richland County, was sentenced on Mar. 12 to ten years in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition.
The case highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement to address gun violence and related crimes in the community. Lower’s sentencing follows an incident on April 25, 2022, when officers from the Irmo Police Department responded to a single vehicle collision. While en route, they learned that the driver had assaulted a passerby who stopped to help and attempted to steal another vehicle.
Upon arrival, officers were informed by a witness that the suspect, later identified as Lower and wearing a bloody white shirt, had fled into nearby woods. A K-9 unit from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department assisted in locating Lower after finding his bloodied shirt in the woods. He was arrested nearby with several types of drugs, a .22 caliber pistol, and 300 rounds of .22 caliber ammunition.
Lower is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition due to previous convictions for criminal conspiracy, second-degree burglary, grand larceny, and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced him to 120 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
The investigation involved the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Irmo Police Department, and Richland County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney William K. Witherspoon prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), an initiative aimed at reducing violent crime through collaboration between law enforcement agencies and communities.
