Two in court on firearms counts

Two Southeast Missouri men were in federal court on Monday for illegally possessing firearms.

Jerry L. Rector, 29, of Jackson, Mo., was sentenced to 15 years in prison for being a previously convicted felon in possession of firearms. Last Aug. 17, Cape Girardeau County sheriff's deputies met Rector at his residence to follow up on a tip he had firearms.

They found a pistol and a rifle, which Rector admitted belonged to him.

He had previously been convicted of five felonies.

Donnell Dewayne Cobb, 33, of Sikeston, Mo., pleaded guilty to one felony count of being a previously convicted felon in possession of a firearm. On July 21, 2000, he was driving on a public street in Sikeston when a police officer stopped him for a traffic violation, discovered Cobb's driving privileges had been revoked, arrested Cobb and searched the car.

The officer found a semiautomatic pistol. Cobb admitted the gun was his. He had been convicted of felony stealing in 1991 and felony theft in 1994.

He could face a maximum punishment of 10 years in jail and a $250,000 fine.