Niagara Falls Man Sentenced on Gun and Witness Tampering Charges

          BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Rodriguez Brown, 37, of Niagara Falls, N.Y., who was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and witness tampering while on court supervision, was sentenced to 33 months in prison by U.S. District Chief Judge William M. Skretny.

            Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Catherine Baumgarten, who handled the case, stated that between 2009 and 2010, Brown sold crack cocaine in the City of Niagara Falls. In May 2010, Niagara Falls Police officers executed a search at the defendant’s residence on
77th Street and recovered a loaded shotgun and ammunition. Brown was indicted on charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and related drug offenses in August of 2010. In April 2012, with federal charges pending, Brown attempted to bribe a witness in the case and was charged additionally with witness tampering.

            The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Resident Agent in Charge Frank Christiano, the Niagara Falls Police Department, under the direction of Chief Bryan DalPorto, and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derneda.