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District of New Jersey
Paul J. Fishman
, United States Attorney
Contact: Rebekah Carmichael
www.justice.gov/usao/nj
Essex County, N.J., Man Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison for Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm
NEWARK, N.J. B An Essex County, N.J., man with a felony criminal record was sentenced today to 70 months in prison for carrying a loaded semi-automatic pistol, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Victor Lopez, 25, of Newark, was previously convicted of one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm following a three-day trial, in which the jury deliberated for four hours before returning the guilty verdict. U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:
Officers of the City of Passaic Police Department responded to a 911 call on Sept. 13, 2012, about a possible burglary in progress at an apartment building in Passaic, N.J., where they encountered Lopez leaving the building.
Officers stopped Lopez, who appeared nervous, and found a gun in his back pocket. The .380 caliber semi-automatic handgun was loaded with seven bullets, including one in the chamber. Four of the bullets were hollow-point rounds.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Thompson sentenced Lopez to three years of supervised released.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George Belsky, and officers of the City of Passaic Police Department, under the direction of Deputy Chief Rosario J. Capuana, with the investigation leading to today's sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara F. Merin and Jonathan W. Romankow of the U.S. Attorney=s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: C. Brian Kapalin Esq., Maplewood, N.J.
Newark Field Division
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