ALBUQUERQUE - Morris Mora, 30, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court to 96 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for violating the federal firearms laws by being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. Mora was ordered to serve his federal sentence consecutive to a seven-year sentence previously imposed on a related state conviction in the 2nd Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico.
Mora, whose criminal history includes convictions for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated assault on a peace officer with a deadly weapon, and aggravated fleeing from a law enforcement officer, was prosecuted as part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets violent, repeat offenders for federal prosecution. Under this initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target for federal prosecution violent or repeat offenders with the goal of making communities in New Mexico safer places for people to live and work.
Mora was charged by criminal complaint on Aug. 7, 2017, with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. According to the complaint, officers of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) arrested Mora on state charges, including a related firearms charge, in the North Valley of Albuquerque on March 8, 2017, after the APD officers located a firearm and ammunition in Mora’s backpack incident to his arrest for allegedly driving a stolen vehicle. Mora was transferred to federal custody from state custody in Sept. 2017. The related state firearms charges were dismissed in favor of federal prosecution.
Mora subsequently was indicted on Sept. 6, 2017, and was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition on March 8, 2017, in Bernalillo County, N.M. At the time, Mora was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of his status as a convicted felon.
On May 4, 2018, Mora pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that on March 8, 2017, he was in possession of a firearm and ammunition which were located inside a backpack when Mora was stopped by law enforcement officers while driving a vehicle. Mora acknowledged that he was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition in March 2017, because of his status as a convicted felon.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and APD, with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard R. Thomas prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
