Fresno County Man Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing a Handgun

FRESNO, Calif. — Christian Uriel Garcia Andrade, 36, of Huron, pleaded guilty today to unlawfully possessing a firearm, United States Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on Feb. 18, 2018, while in pursuit of Andrade, a police officer saw him toss an object into a cul-de-sac. The officer later returned to the cul-de-sac and found a loaded 9 mm handgun in the same area where Andrade had tossed the object. Because of his prior felony convictions, Andrade is prohibited from possessing firearms.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Huron Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin J. Gilio is prosecuting the case.

Andrade is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on May 11. Andrade faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see https://www.justice.gov/projectguardian.