Worcester Man Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, Ammunition and Silencer

BOSTON – A Worcester man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Worcester to unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon and possessing an unregistered silencer. 

Ryan Davidson, 39, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and one count of possessing an unregistered firearm-silencer. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for July 15, 2025. In August 2023, Davidson was indicted by a federal grand jury. The grand jury returned a superseding indictment against Davidson in November 2023.

On or about May 9, 2023 in Worcester, Davidson was stopped by police for a marked lane violation and for concerns about the Georgia “dealer” license plate on his vehicle. After failing to provide proof of insurance on the vehicle, Davidson was told he could leave with a citation but that his car would have to be towed, and an inventory search conducted pursuant to the tow. Davidson told police he did not want them to search his car. Shortly thereafter, he fled the scene on foot. Davidson was apprehended in a backyard on an adjacent street, at which time he was arrested. At the time of the incident, Davidson was wearing a GPS monitoring device in connection with open state charges involving a firearm.  

During the inventory search of Davidson’s vehicle, a heavy black bag was located in the trunk of the vehicle. In the bag, was a black balaclava and a zipped blue bag. Inside the blue bag, a Polymer P80, 9-millimeter pistol with no serial number, with a 9-millimeter magazine inserted containing 10 rounds of ammunition, a silencer and a box of 9-millimeter ammunition containing 9 rounds were located. A second firearm was recovered from the glovebox, specifically, a Taurus 9-millimeter pistol with a round in the chamber and a magazine inserted containing six rounds of 9-millimeter ammunition. Davidson possessed the Taurus 9-millimeter pistol and 26 rounds of 9mm ammunition after having been convicted of previous felonies for which he had been sentenced to 7-10 years in prison.
 
The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides a sentence of up to 15 years’ incarceration. The charge of possessing an unregistered firearm provides a sentence of up to 10 years’ incarceration. Both charges carry a potential for supervised release of up to three years and a $250,000 fine. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Paul Saucier, Chief, Worcester Police Department made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin J. Brown of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.

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 gun violence and other violent crime, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit https://www.justice.gov/PSN.