Worcester Man Pleads Guilty to Gun Charge

BOSTON – A Worcester man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Franklin Safo-Agyare, 25, pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti B. Saris scheduled sentencing for Sept. 26, 2018.

Following a two-year investigation, Safo-Agyare and eight others were charged in January 2018 in connection with illegal activity within and near the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments in Jamaica Plain, formerly known as the Bromley Heath Housing Development. On June 6, 2018, Safo-Agyare, who was previously convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, sold a Jennings Model J22 .22 caliber pistol containing five rounds of ammunition to another individual in the vicinity of the housing development.  

The investigation and arrests sought to reduce violence and improve the quality of life in and around the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments for residents by removing individuals who engaged in criminal activity. Safo-Agyare is the fifth defendant to plead guilty in this case.

The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, up to 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; Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Boston Police Commissioner William Evans made the announcement. Assistance was also provided by the Boston Housing Authority’s Department of Police and Public Safety.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.