BREAKING NEWS IN MCNAIR KILLING

Updated: July 17, 2009, 2:29 PM ET
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WASHINGTON -- Federal agents have arrested a convicted murderer for allegedly providing the gun later used to kill ex-NFL quarterback Steve McNair.

Adrian J. Gilliam Jr., 33, of LaVergne, Tenn., was arrested Friday morning by agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and faces a "felon in possession" charge, a source familiar with the case told ESPN.com's Paul Kuharsky.

A criminal complaint unsealed Friday in Nashville says that Gilliam -- who was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted armed robbery in 1993 in Florida -- admitted he sold the gun to the woman who later shot McNair.

Gilliam is in custody in the federal courthouse in Nashville and will appear in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Clifton Knowles at 4 p.m. ET. The U.S. Attorney's office will ask that he be held without bond, a source told ESPN.com.

McNair was shot to death on July 4 at his condo by his 20-year-old mistress Sahel Kazemi, who then turned the gun on herself.

By having the gun, Gilliam violated a section of the federal code that says it is a felony for any person convicted of a felony to possess a firearm that has moved in interstate commerce. Very few guns are manufactured in Tennessee, so practically every gun in Tennessee has moved as part of interstate commerce, a source told ESPN.com.

Detectives traced the gun, a 9 mm Bryco/Jennings, to its 2002 sale at a pawn shop, according to the complaint. Gilliam eventually bought it from an individual for $100 about a year ago. Investigators said Gilliam told them he bought the gun for protection after his home was burglarized, and police reports indicate he did report a burglary about the time of the gun purchase.

According to court documents, Gilliam admitted to detectives he sold the gun to Kazemi for $100.

Federal prosecutors in Nashville planned to announce the case at a press conference scheduled for 2 p.m. ET.

Police announced in a news conference last week that Kazemi purchased "a fully loaded nine millimeter pistol from a private individual" who met her in the parking lot of the mall where she worked at a Dave & Busters restaurant.

Kazemi met the person when she was trying to sell her car. She mentioned to him that she was looking to buy a gun and he told her he had one for sale, police said. The sale took place two days before McNair's shooting.

Authorities believe McNair was asleep when Kazemi put the pistol to his head and pulled the trigger. She put two more slugs into his chest and a fourth bullet into the other side of his head before shooting herself.

McNair, a married father of four, walked away from the NFL last year. "Air McNair" was known as a gutsy quarterback who played through serious injuries and led his Tennessee Titans to a Super Bowl.

Though the gun sale in question did not involve a licensed gun dealer, the ATF recently warned all gun dealers in Tennessee that they must still comply with federal gun laws despite a new state law aimed at easing such requirements for weapons manufactured and sold in-state.

Information from ESPN.com's Paul Kuharsky and The Associated Press contributed to this story.