Kansas City, Kan. ? A Lawrence man pleaded guilty Friday in U.S. District Court to one count of unlawful possession of a sawed-off shotgun.

Major C. Edwards, 28, admitted that on Aug. 11, 2006, he left a short-barrel, 12-gauge shotgun on the porch of a Lawrence residence. The next day he returned to the residence to get the shotgun and discovered it had been turned over to police.

Edwards also admitted that in 2000 he was convicted in Douglas County District Court on a felony charge of selling cocaine. He failed to register the shotgun with the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, which is required by federal law.

Edwards will be sentenced April 14. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Edwards’ name also has been linked to the October 2006 shooting death of Anthony “Clacc” Vitale. Vitale’s body was found along a private country lane west of Lawrence. Investigators sought Edwards because they think he spent a night out with Vitale the day before Vitale’s body was found.

According to federal court documents, Edwards filed a motion seeking to prevent prosecutors from mentioning that he is or ever was a suspect in a Douglas County homicide case if his federal case had gone to trial.