Shreveport felon sentenced for possession of pistol

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced today that a Shreveport felon was sentenced to 57 months in prison for illegally possessing a pistol after being convicted of multiple felonies.

Gabriel Jones, 37, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the January 26, 2018 guilty plea, Shreveport police officers were executing a warrant for someone else on August 7, 2017 at Jones’ residence. During a search of the residence, police found marijuana in plain view, and they found a Ruger, Model P85, 9 mm pistol, crack cocaine and additional marijuana in the back bedroom closet. The pistol had a 30-round extended magazine inside it. The other occupants of the residence denied ownership of the gun and said it belonged to Jones. Police also searched Jones’ cell phone and found images and data showing the pistol belonged to him.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority.   In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.

The ATF, U.S. Marshals Service and Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Aaron Crawford prosecuted the case.