Armed Career Criminal From Albuquerque Sentenced To Fifteen Years In Federal Prison For Unlawful Possession Of A Firearm

ALBUQUERQUE – Richard Elizardo Luna, 52, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to 15 years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. Luna’s sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales and Thomas G. Atteberry, Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Luna was arrested in April 2012, on an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. According to the indictment, Luna unlawfully possessed a firearm in Bernalillo County, N.M., on Oct. 2, 2011. The indictment stated that, at the time, Luna was prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition because he previously had been convicted of residential burglary in the Second Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico, and of residential burglary and larceny in the Fifth Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico.

Court records reflect that Luna has other felony convictions beyond those identified in the indictment including convictions for conspiracy to possess heroin, commercial burglary, receiving stolen property, possession of a controlled substance. Luna also has 15 convictions for failure to appear and a driving while intoxicated conviction.

On Dec. 5, 2012, Luna pled guilty to the indictment. The sentence imposed on Luna today was enhanced under the Armed Career Criminal Act, which requires a mandatory minimum 15 year prison sentence for career criminals.

This case was prosecuted as part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution. Under this anti-violence initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Albuquerque Police Department, with assistance from the District Attorney’s Office for the Second Judicial District of the State of New Mexico. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Norman Cairns.