Syracuse Man Sentenced For Possessing a Pistol as a Felon

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Edwin Cuello-Martinez, 32, was sentenced today to serve 57 months in prison to be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release in connection with his conviction for possessing a pistol as a convicted felon, announced United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith, John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Kenton Buckner, City of Syracuse Police Department.

As part of his previous guilty plea, Cuello-Martinez admitted that he possessed a Bryco 9mm semiautomatic pistol when he was stopped by uniformed Syracuse Police Officers at about 3:30 am on July 9, 2018 in the 100 block of Coolidge Avenue, in the City of Syracuse. As the Officers were speaking with Cuello-Martinez and a female companion, he suddenly fled on foot, abandoning his backpack containing the pistol. Following a short chase, Syracuse Police Officers were able to apprehend Cuello-Martinez, whom it was then learned was the subject of an arrest warrant for absconding from the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (Parole). Cuello-Martinez was previously convicted of five (5) prior felonies and was prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms or ammunition. The Bryco 9mm-semiautomatic pistol possessed by the defendant was inoperable due to a broken firing pin. Also found in the backpack were three live 9mm bullets.

This case was investigated by the City of Syracuse Police Department and the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Southwick, with assistance from the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office.

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the U.S. Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.