Goshen Man Sentenced to 84 Months in Prison

SOUTH BEND – Koby Eldridge, 31 years old, of Goshen, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to possessing a firearm after being adjudicated mentally defective, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Eldridge was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, in May, 2023, Eldridge was found to be in possession of five loaded firearms that were recovered from his car.  On that same date, another loaded firearm and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition that were recovered from his residence.  Eldridge had previously been adjudicated to be incompetent to stand trial in Elkhart Superior Court in February 2021, and had been committed to a mental institution, such that he was precluded from possessing these firearms. 

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with assistance from the Goshen Police Department, the Elkhart Police Department, and the Elkhart Sheriff’s Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joel Gabrielse.

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 gun violence, 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.