NORFOLK— Kenya Mcchell Chapman, 32, of Smithfield, appeared in federal court today and was charged by criminal complaint with dealing in firearms without a license in connection with the March 12 shooting at Old Dominion University, and with three counts of making false statements during purchases of firearms.
On March 12, Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, 36, committed a shooting at Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk during an Army Reserve Officer’s Training Corp (ROTC) class, killing one victim and wounding two more. Today, the United States Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Virginia law enforcement searched Chapman’s residence and located ammunition consistent with the firearm recovered from the ODU shooting. Champman allegedly stole the firearm from a vehicle in Newport News one year before the ODU shooting and sold it to Jalloh days before the ODU shooting.
Jalloh was convicted in the Eastern District of Virginia in 2016 of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. As a previously convicted felon, Jalloh could not legally purchase or possess firearms or ammunition.
According to U.S. Attorney’s Office, in addition, according to court documents, in 2021, Chapman allegedly purchased three firearms that were recovered from crime scenes shortly afterward. Two were recovered from the scene of a homicide and another recovered from a drunk in public incident.
If convicted, the U.S. Attorney’s Office says that Chapman faces up to 35 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI’s Norfolk Field Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division are investigating this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Luke Bresnahan and Rebecca Gantt are prosecuting the case.
