Rhode Island Man Charged with Illegal Possession of Firearms

Portland, Maine:  United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced that Salvador Rodrigues, 21, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, was charged by criminal complaint in U.S. District Court with being a felon in possession of firearms. 

According to the criminal complaint, between May 12 and August 23, the defendant illegally possessed five pistols.  He was prohibited from possessing them because on May 4, he was convicted in Rhode Island of felony possession of a pistol without a license and a felony drug offense.

The defendant faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Pawtucket Police Department.  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.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions 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.

A complaint is merely an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.