May 25, 2012
Department of Justice
United States Attorney William C. Killian Eastern District of Tennessee
Johnny Ray Lopez, Jr. Sentenced To 94 Months For Being a Felon In Possession Of A Firearm
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - On Thursday, May 24, 2012, Johnny Ray Lopez, Jr., of Johnson City, Tenn., was sentenced to 94 months in prison, by the Honorable Leon Jordan, U.S. District Judge, Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville. Upon his release from prison, Lopez will be subject to supervised release under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for three years.
Following an October 2011 trial, a jury convicted Lopez of possessing a firearm after having been previously convicted of a felony offense. Lopez was arrested in October 2010, after he was found traveling in a vehicle in Johnson City, Tenn., with a loaded 9mm pistol. Federal law proscribes possession of a firearm by any convicted felon. Lopez, originally from Chicago, Illinois, was affiliated with gang activity in Chicago, and has several prior convictions for violent offenses.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the joint investigation which led to indictment and subsequent conviction of Lopez included the Tennessee Highway Patrol and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant U. S. Attorney J. Gregory Bowman represented the United States.
