Columbia man sentenced to 77 months in prison on federal firearm charge

Ernest Durane Mack, 35, was sentenced to 77 months in federal prison after he plead guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO)— Ernest Durane Mack, 35, was sentenced to 77 months in federal prison after he plead guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

On July 26, 2019, authorities say a SC Highway Patrol trooper stopped Mack’s vehicle after he recognized it was the same car that fled after he attempted to stop it a week earlier.

Mack led the trooper on a short chase, eventually pulling into an apartment complex and fleeing on foot.

He was located in the apartment complex breezeway, where the trooper saw him with a handgun, say officials.

Mack told officers he fled because he was in possession of the handgun in the car, which had been reported stolen in Spartanburg County, say officials.

At the time of this offense, authorities say Mack was on state probation and had two prior state convictions for trafficking cocaine, forgery, possession of a controlled substance, failure to stop for blue light and siren, and criminal domestic violence 1st degree.