
Wesley Hadsell, stepfather of deceased Longwood student Angelica "AJ" Hadsell, was sentenced with 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to federal ammo charges in 2015.
After pleading guilty to a felony ammunition charge in March 2015, Wesley Hadsell, the stepfather to Anjelica (AJ) Hadsell was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Tuesday, Nov. 15.
Over a year and a half ago, Hadsell plead guilty to the charge after police found the incriminating ammunition in Hadsell’s hotel room in 2015 while looking for his then-missing stepdaughter. As a convicted felon, it was illegal for Hadsell to possess or transport ammunition, according to ammunition regulations in Virginia.
The charge came during the same period police were investigating the disappearance of Hadsell’s stepdaughter, AJ. He was seen as a person of interest in AJ’s disappearance and death, but an arrest was never made.
According to The Virginian-Pilot, Hadsell has a long criminal record dating back to the age of 12. The criminal charges include a number of burglaries, robbing a bank and allegations that he kidnapped and raped his first wife. He has been arrested a total of 28 times and convicted 12 times.
According to WAVY-TV, Hadsell's recommended sentence was 10 years, but the judge labeled him an “armed career criminal.” The label increased his potential sentence to a minimum of 15 years or potentially life in prison.
The U.S General Attorney had recommended a sentence of 15 years in prison, but Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen decided 20 years was more appropriate.
“There is no question in the court’s mind that society is safer if you’re not here for a while,” Allen told Hadsell after the verdict, according to WAVY-TV.
Hadsell's defense attorney Jason Dunn said the length of Allen's sentence "caught me off guard" after court.
“I’m disappointed," said Dunn, according to The Virginian-Pilot.
Dunn said they plan to appeal the label in the days to come, taking the case to circuit court.
According to The Virginian-Pilot, Allen told Hadsell that his purpose in life was not to wear a jumpsuit and spend his life in handcuffs. She said she believes he can become a model prisoner, then come out and deviate from the way that television and newspapers portray him to be.
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