Previously Convicted Felon Admits Second Felon in Possession of Firearm Charge; Agrees to 12-Year Prison Sentence

CAMDEN, N.J. – A Essex County, New Jersey, man today admitted being a felon in possession of a weapon – for the second time – as well as a violation of supervised release from his first felon in possession conviction, and agreed to a 144-month sentence, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

John Cottle, 47, pleaded guilty to an information charging him with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of violation of supervised release from his first felon in possession of a firearm conviction from 2010. Cottle entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman in Camden federal court.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

In December 2016, investigators from the Newark and Hillside police departments responded to reports of a robbery in the area of South 13th Street, near Avon Avenue, in Newark.  Officers encountered Cottle in the area and upon investigation found him to be in possession of a loaded .40 caliber Glock semi-automatic handgun. Cottle has numerous prior felony convictions, including a 2010 felon in possession of a firearm conviction in the District of New Jersey – from which he was still on supervised release at the time of the 2016 arrest – and is prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal law.  

The felon in possession of a firearm charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine; the violation of supervised release carries a maximum potential penalty of 24 months in prison. As part of his plea agreement, Cottle agreed to the maximum penalty for each of the crimes charged.  
  
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited FBI special agents, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher, with the investigation leading to the guilty plea. He also thanked the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino; the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose; the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Michael A. Monahan; and the Hillside Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Vincent Ricciardi, for their assistance.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Zach Intrater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.