MACON, Ga. — A Macon man could spend the next 10 years in prison after he walked into a Walmart store and waved a gun at customers inside.
Selma Oliver-Smith, 45, of Macon, was found guilty Tuesday of illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon following a two-day trial.
The incident happened in Aug. 2021. Bibb County deputies said they were called out the Walmart along Harrison Road in Macon for a call of a man “aggressively waving a gun at people who approached him inside the store.”
“Oliver-Smith was found inside his hotel room, where officers found two firearms hidden inside the toilet bowl tank. One of the firearms, a Jennings Firearms Bryco .380, looked identical to the one in the photo provided by WalMart,” a news release from US Attorney for Georgia’s Middle District said.
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Oliver-Smith was known to officers and has a lengthy criminal history with convictions for burglary, theft by taking, and second-degree criminal damage.
Because he is a convicted felon, it is illegal for Olive-Smith to have a gun.
“Not only is it illegal for a convicted felon to possess a firearm anytime and anywhere, Mr. Oliver-Smith chose to walk into a neighborhood store and wave a gun at customers. Thankfully, no shots were fired, and no one was hurt,” U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary said.
“Selma Oliver-Smith’s arrest and conviction shows that the justice system will not tolerate dangerous career criminals using a firearm to menace innocent shoppers in a busy Walmart,” Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said.
Oliver-Smith faces 10 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is set for July 11.
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