U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Louisiana issued the following announcement on Jan. 14.
United States Attorney Brandon J. Fremin announced that Chief Judge Shelly D. Dick sentenced Tevontae Harris, age 25, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to 97 months in federal prison to run consecutive with his other pending state charges, following his conviction of possessing a firearm by a convicted felon. The Court further sentenced Harris to three years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment and ordered that the firearm and ammunition involved be forfeited.
According to admissions made as part of his guilty plea, on March 18, 2019, Livingston Parish Sheriff deputies were conducting surveillance of Harris’ condo complex in Denham Springs, Louisiana. While there, they observed Harris retrieve a Mirco Draco, 7.62x39 mm semi-automatic pistol from the trunk of his vehicle. Harris then brought the firearm into his residence. LPSO obtained a search warrant for Harris’ residence and recovered the firearm he was seen carrying into his residence. The firearm was loaded with an extended magazine containing 30 rounds of ammunition.
Prior to possessing the firearm, Harris was convicted in St. Landry Parish in January 2019, of attempted simple robbery.
U.S. Attorney Fremin stated, “Keeping firearms out of the hands of violent felons is a high priority for this office and our federal and local partners. This conviction and sentence sends a message that we will make every effort to ensure our communities are free of armed felons. I want to congratulate our prosecutor, the ATF, and the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office for their work on this case.”
“In our effort to disrupt violent gun crime in our community, ATF will continue to focus efforts on prohibited individuals, like Tevontae Harris, who unlawfully possess firearms,” said ATF Baton Rouge Field Office Resident Agent in Charge Mary Downie. “Reducing firearm related crimes and keeping our neighborhoods safe is the top priority for ATF.”
Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard stated, ‘We do our best to be observant and to introduce the best evidence we can to prosecutors. I’m proud of my skilled deputies and am grateful that they choose to serve and protect in Livingston Parish. As always, I’m also thankful for our U.S. Attorney who is an excellent partner when it comes to fighting crime.”
This matter is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with substantial assistance from the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Thornhill.
Original source can be found here.
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