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Columbus gun-trafficking case ends with sixth guilty plea

Khalid Dorsey, 21, pleaded guilty to possessing and transferring a machine gun after admitting he sold a pistol fitted with a conversion device in downtown Columbus. Prosecutors say the six-defendant case involved at least 17 firearms; sentencing dates have not been set.

Columbus gun-trafficking case ends with sixth guilty plea
A six-defendant federal gun-trafficking case involving at least 17 firearms has concluded with a guilty plea from 21-year-old Khalid Dorsey, prosecutors said. Dorsey pleaded guilty this week to possessing and transferring a machine gun. He admitted that in September 2025 he trafficked a pistol fitted with a Glock switch on North Fourth Street in downtown Columbus. The device can convert a semiautomatic pistol to fire automatically. Dorsey faces up to 10 years in prison. Dorsey is the sixth and final defendant in the case. The other five — William Turner, Kevin Fowler, Robert Phillips, Jeffrey Perry and Rashied Houston — pleaded guilty earlier this year. Prosecutors identified Turner, 57, as the lead defendant. He pleaded guilty in June to dealing cocaine and trafficking at least six firearms, and investigators said he sold or arranged sales through Phillips, 45, and Perry, 62. Fowler, 55, who had a prior felony conviction, pleaded guilty in March. Houston, 23, pleaded guilty earlier this month to the same machine-gun offense as Dorsey. Prosecutors said Houston was with Dorsey during the September sale and had also sold two other firearms fitted with conversion devices. The offenses in the case occurred between August and November 2025. Sentencing dates for all six defendants have not been announced.

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