PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Sarunn N. Phan, 27, of Providence, pleaded guilty in federal court today to being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha and Providence Police Chief Colonel Hugh T. Clements, Jr.
Phan faces a statutory sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison when he is sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi on May 7, 2015. Phan also faces a consecutive sentence of up to 2 years in prison for being in violation of federal supervised release. In June 2011, Phan was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison to be followed by 3 years supervised release for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to information presented to the court, late in the evening of April 9, 2014, Providence Police responded to shots fired in the vicinity of Oakland and Dickens Street. Upon arrival, officers found eleven.9mm shell casings on the ground and noticed a Jeep Grand Cherokee in the vicinity. About an hour later, officers observed the same vehicle at Douglas Avenue and Eaton Street. After observing a traffic violation, the officers affected a traffic stop.
While pulling in behind the vehicle, officers observed an individual in a rear passenger seat toss a large black box into the rear cargo area. Upon arriving at the vehicle, the officers observed an open box with a firearm inside in the rear cargo area. Upon further inspection, officers discovered a.9mm handgun with an empty magazine. They also located a black plastic bag with ten.380mm rounds and a Glock 40 caliber magazine with 8 rounds of ammunition.
After being placed inside a police cruiser, Phan told an officer, “It is my car and everything in it is mine." At the police station, Mr. Phan admitted that the Jeep was registered to him, the weapon was his, and told officers “it was self-defense." Phan told police that he had been shot at earlier in the evening.
Phan has been detained since his arrest.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives assisted Providence Police in the investigation of this matter.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard W. Rose.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
