Prior Felony Convictions Include Vehicular Hijacking
A man who possessed and discharged a hand gun was sentenced today to ten years in federal prison.
Montecarlos Marteze Gant, age 36, from Chicago, Illinoi, received the prison term after a February 6, 2019, guilty plea to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Evidence during the case established that in April 2018, Gant possessed a Smith and Wesson.380 caliber pistol with an obliterated serial number. Gant shot one round from the gun while involved in an incident with another individual. The following day, Gant attempted to sell the gun at a pawn shop in Dubuque, but was unable to because of the gun’s obliterated serial number. The next day, police responded to a call for service at a residence in Dubuque, and attempted to speak with Gant. Gant fled from officers, and eventually officers caught him and the pistol was recovered in his pocket, loaded with one round in the chamber.
Gant’s criminal history included felony convictions for aggravated vehicular hijacking with a firearm and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. Gant had been released from prison less than four months before the events giving rise to his federal conviction.
Gant was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand. Gant was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment, the statutory maximum sentence. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
During the sentencing hearing, the Chief Judge Strand noted that in light of his criminal history, Gant “should not have been, frankly, within the same zip code of a firearm."
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Gant is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa C. Williams and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and the Dubuque Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 18-CR-1019.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
