Violent felon sentenced for gun charge

McALLEN, Texas – A 37-year-old Alton man has been ordered to federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Juan Manuel Teran Jr., aka El Blunt, pleaded guilty June 22.

Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has now ordered Teran to serve 57 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard additional information about Teran’s history of robbery, repeated assaults on women and felony drug possession. In imposing the sentence, Judge Crane adopted findings that Teran was trafficking in narcotics at the time that he possessed the firearms.

In January, law enforcement responded to a domestic violence call at a residence in McAllen. The incident resulted in an arrest warrant for Terran for assault on a pregnant person.

Upon his arrest, authorities found Terran to be in possession of meth, cocaine, marijuana, Alprazolam, Clonazepam and heroin. He also had two firearms.

As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition per federal law.

Teran was prosecuted as part of a joint Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and U.S. Attorney’s Office initiative known as Operation: Knock Down. It started in 2022 and focuses federal resources on armed and violent offenders in the Rio Grande Valley.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert L. Guerra Jr. prosecuted the case.