A Waterville woman was sentenced in federal court Thursday to more than three years in prison for aiding and abetting a man in making false statements during the purchase of a firearm.

The woman, Nikeshia Knight, 25, directed Jason Palmer, 44, of Albion, to illegally purchase the firearm for her and then compensated him with fentanyl, a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maine said.

U.S. District Court Judge John A. Woodcock Jr. sentenced Knight to 37 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, it said. She pleaded guilty on Oct. 30, 2024.

Palmer was sentenced to 12 months and a day in prison followed by three years of supervised release for making the straw purchase, which occurred at A&G Shooting at 214 Center Road in Fairfield, prosecutors said.

“According to court records, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) obtained a copy of an ATF Form 4473 regarding a June 16, 2022 firearm purchase from a federally licensed firearms dealer in Fairfield, Maine,” the statement said.

“Further investigation revealed Knight was involved in this purchase. When interviewed, Knight admitted that she had used a straw purchaser to acquire the firearm because she would not pass a background check, providing money for the purchase and fentanyl after it was successfully made. Text messages between Knight and the proxy purchaser confirmed that Knight directed the purchase.”

A straw purchase is an illegal firearm purchase where the gun buyer, being unable to pass a required federal background check or wanting not to have their name associated with the transaction, uses a proxy buyer who can pass the required background check to buy the firearm for the person, the statement said.