GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – A Green Bay man is facing weapons charges after police followed up on a domestic abuse complaint.
21-year-old Justin D. Cornelius is charged with possession of a firearm by a felon, carrying a concealed weapon and bail jumping. All counts have repeater enhancers.
According to the criminal complaint, Green Bay police got a visit on March 20 from a woman who claimed her daughter’s jaw was broken by her boyfriend. The woman had gotten a text photo from her daughter allegedly showing her injury, and also heard that he wouldn’t let her daughter leave their residence.
Officers were sent to 1000 block of August Street, when they learned the boyfriend had left the residence on foot. He was described as a black man in his mid-20’s wearing a black jacket, blue jeans and a multi-colored skull cap with the first name of Justin.
A man matching that description hopped inside a car, which began to pull away. Officers followed that car to the 700 block of Schoen Street. Two white men got out of the front car when it stopped, but the suspect never left the back seat.
One officer approached and asked the man in the back seat for his name. He identified himself as Justin Cornelius. Cornelius was asked to step out of the car, and without further questioning said that, “He never did anything to her and that I was looking for someone else.”
A short time later, a woman came running down a driveway area of an apartment complex and Cornelius began yelling for her to come over and tell the cops he didn’t do anything.
While that was going on, two other officers noticed a barrel and rail system of what appeared to be an Uzi I-style firearm often referred to as a Tec 9 or Mac 10 in the car. One of the cops recognized Cornelius, saying he knew him as a gang member with a history of weapon-related offenses.
A search warrant was approved for the car, and officers recovered the firearm with was, “a semi-automatic Uzi-style 9 mm firearm. Also found in the back passenger side door was a large, high capacity magazine which contained seven 9 mm bullets.”
Per the complaint, the girlfriend texted her mom to say, “Don’t say I told you n he gotta gun tec n a mac.” Cornelius was also overheard on his phone saying, “Pray for me, pray for me. Imma try to get down to Milwaukee tomorrow.”
According to online court records, Justin Cornelius was previously convicted of felony burglary in February 2012 in Milwaukee County court.
Cornelius is due in court Wednesday for his arraignment. If convicted on all counts, he faces more than 18 years in prison.
