SKOWHEGAN, Maine — An Embden man was arrested Thursday on a federal firearms charge as the result of an investigation by the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office Detective Division into a report that a probationer living in the county was in illegal possession of firearms.
Michael Kelly, 26, is being held without bail on a probation hold, Somerset County Chief Deputy James Ross said Friday in a news release.
The investigation that led to Kelly’s arrest began on Aug. 28, when Somerset County detectives received information from state Probation and Parole officers indicating that Kelly was illegally in possession of firearms.
A former Massachusetts resident, Kelly had had his probation transferred to Maine, Ross said. Kelly was on probation for witness intimidation, which is a felony in Massachusetts. The probation officers reported that they had seen numerous guns in Kelly’s home on Forest Drive.
Somerset County Detective Michael Ross was able to confirm through the district attorney’s office in Woburn, Massachusetts, that Kelly was a convicted felon.
The detective then obtained a search warrant for Kelly’s residence, where seven firearms — including four “assault style” rifles and two handguns — were seized, the chief deputy said.
The Somerset County district attorney’s office was consulted, and Kelly was charged Thursday with possession of firearms by a convicted felon, a Class C felony.
Assisting Somerset County sheriff’s deputies in addition with state probation and parole officers were members of the Maine Warden Service.
Kelly is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 14.