Co-Defendant Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Possessing Firearm

BOISE – Jennifer Ann Hillyard, 28, of Nampa, Idaho, was sentenced today in United States District Court in Boise to 51 months in prison for transferring an unregistered sawed-off shotgun, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered Hillyard to serve three years of supervised release.

Co-defendant Baldemar Arteaga, Jr., 28, of Caldwell, Idaho, pleaded guilty yesterday to unlawful possession of a firearm. He faces up to ten years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release. Sentencing is set for September 17, 2012, at the federal courthouse in Boise.

According to court documents, the two defendants admitted that on February 24, 2011, they sold two shotguns to another individual for $200 at Arteaga's residence in Caldwell, a Smith & Wesson 12-gauge shotgun and a Winchester 12-gauge shotgun with an obliterated serial number. Artega is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a 2005 conviction in Minidoka County, Idaho, for felony possession of a controlled substance.

The case was investigated by the Treasure Valley Metro Violent Crime Task Force, a task force comprised of local and federal law enforcement agencies in the Treasure Valley. It is being prosecuted by the former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney hired by the Treasure Valley Partnership and the State of Idaho, and housed in the Canyon County Prosecutor's Office, to address gang crimes. The Treasure Valley Partnership comprises a group of elected officials in southeast Idaho dedicated to regional coordination, cooperation, and collaboration on creating coherent regional growth. For more information, visit www.treasurevalleypartners.org.