Louisiana Man Faces up to 10 Years in Prison After Pleading Guilty to Firearms Charges

Louisiana – On July 14, 2022, U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Renaldo Ruffin, age 29, of New Orleans, Louisiana, pled guilty on July 12, 2022, to violations of the Federal Gun Control Act.

Ruffin pled guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of being a felon in possession of ammunition on July 12, 2022, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g) (1).

According to court documents, Ruffin was in possession of a Glock Model 23.40 caliber S&W semiautomatic handgun on or about August 30, 2020. Ruffin also possessed 5.56 caliber ammunition on January 24, 2022.

Ruffin faces a maximum sentence of up to ten years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, up to three years of supervised release, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee on each count.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, which is at the heart of the Department of Justice’s efforts to reduce violent crime. PSN is an evidence-based program that has been shown to reduce violent crime. PSN brings together a diverse range of stakeholders to identify the most pressing violent crime issues 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 collaborates with community-based prevention and reentry programs to achieve long-term crime reductions.

The Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is investigating this case, as are the Louisiana State Police. The prosecution is led by Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan L. Shih.