Fairfax Library Garage Arrest Ends With Federal Prison Sentence

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — A Fairfax man arrested in the parking garage of the City of Fairfax Regional Library last year has been sentenced to 17 months in federal prison after admitting to illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday.

Basim Dauwd Jami, 64, was sentenced to one year and five months in prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Federal law prohibits convicted felons from possessing firearms or ammunition. Prosecutors said Jami has multiple prior felony convictions, making it illegal for him to possess the handgun recovered during his June 2025 arrest.

According to court records, City of Fairfax police officers were searching for Jami on June 11, 2025, because he had an outstanding probation violation. Officers spotted him in Old Town Fairfax shortly before 10:30 a.m., but he fled into the City of Fairfax Regional Library parking garage.

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After briefly losing sight of him, officers found Jami hiding between two vehicles and took him into custody. A witness then alerted police to a handgun lying on the ground near her vehicle that she said had not been there when she parked. Officers recovered the firearm as evidence.

Long Criminal Record

An investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives identified the weapon as a Taurus PT24/7 G2 9mm pistol. Another witness later told investigators the handgun belonged to him and said Jami had been staying at his property.

Federal investigators determined Jami had accumulated numerous felony convictions in Fairfax County dating back decades, including convictions for statutory burglary, aggravated sexual battery, receiving stolen property, possession and transport of a firearm by a convicted felon, burning or destroying a dwelling, and burglary.

Jami was charged federally in late 2025 and later pleaded guilty to the firearms offense. On Wednesday, a federal judge sentenced him to 17 months in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case with assistance from the City of Fairfax Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith Clement prosecuted the case.