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Press Release
BOSTON – The regional president of the Brockton/East Bridgewater Chapters of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club pleaded guilty yesterday to possession of an unregistered firearm.
Bruce Sartwell, a/k/a “Monster,” 48, of East Bridgewater, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of an unregistered firearm and 153 rounds of 5.56 caliber ammunition before U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper, who scheduled sentencing for Nov. 10, 2020. On Oct. 30, 2019, following the execution of a federal search warrant, Sartwell was arrested and charged.
On Oct. 19, 2019, agents intercepted a package originating in China and addressed to Sartwell that was declared as a “Fuel Filter” but actually contained a firearm silencer. A review of importation records revealed that Sartwell had received approximately 65 shipments from Asia (including over 55 from China), many of which were labeled as innocuous items that could have been more easily and cheaply purchased in the United States. During the investigation, law enforcement determined that Sartwell is the Regional President of the Brockton/East Bridgewater Chapters of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club.
On Oct. 30, 2019, a search was executed at Sartwell’s residence. Twelve or more AR-15 style Air-Soft rifles discovered in Sartwell’s garage were later determined not to be firearms. Hidden in the garage was an AR-15 styled “ghost gun” (a firearm without any manufacturing or serial numbers), two empty 30 round magazines, firearm manufacturing tools, assembly parts including milling equipment, buffer spring, buffer tube and a drill press. The AR-15 was later successfully test fired.
In addition, hidden compartments were located in Sartwell’s bedroom that concealed 153 rounds of 5.56 caliber ammunition compatible with the AR-15 styled rifle, two firearm silencers, a guide for assembly and disassembly of an AR-15 rifle, 20 knives, a black powder handgun and a flare gun. In the basement of the house, a floor-length mirror concealed the entrance to a hidden storage area that was found to contain a safe with silencer parts and a firearm assembly instruction book.
The charge of possession of an unregistered firearm provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Michael Shea, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; and Kelly Brady, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, New England Field Division made the announcement today. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Customs and Boarder Protection; Massachusetts State Police; East Bridgewater Police Department; Bristol County Sheriff’s Office; and the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency provided assistance with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth G. Shine and Linsey Weinstein of Lelling’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.