Man admits possessing pistol-turned-machine gun

Saying he wanted to put the case behind him, Alfonzo Lee Womack, 29, appeared before U.S. District Judge Ann Traum and pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and illegally possessing a machine gun.

As part of his plea deal, Womack admitted possessing and firing a modified .40-caliber Glock 22 pistol in the desert near Sloan in October.

The Glock was fitted with a device known as a “Glock auto switch.” The size of a quarter, the switch can be fitted to most Glock pistols and convert them from semi-automatic operation to full automatic mode.

Authorities say the Glock switch is cheap and easy to install. It enables the gun to spray fire at a rate of 1,100 rounds per minute with a single trigger pull.

The switches were used in two, high-profile mass shootings recently: a gunfight in downtown Sacramento, California, on April 3 that left six people dead and 12 injured, and a January shootout in Houston in which three police officers were wounded.

In court, Womack also admitted to shooting another .40-caliber Glock pistol, as well as a 9 mm pistol, a .223 Remington semi-automatic rifle and two homemade guns with no serial numbers.

Womack is prohibited from possessing any firearm because of prior drug convictions.

He is set to be sentenced Nov. 21. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors agreed to recommend just under six years behind bars.

Contact Glen A. Meek at gmeek@reviewjournal.com or 602-380-8951.