Erie Man Sentenced to Prison in Project Safe Neighborhoods Prosecution

ERIE, Pa. - A former resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 14 months in jail and 18 months supervised release on his conviction of violating federal firearms laws and making a false statement in an application for a United States passport, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

United States District Judge Susan Paradise Baxter imposed the sentence on Amaad Maliek Ali, 48.

According to information presented to the court, on April 7, 2018, Ali falsified his application for the purchase of a firearm and lied about his prior felony convictions. A National Instant Criminal Background Check was made and Ali was rejected for the firearm purchase because of his prior criminal record.

In addition, on April 18, 2017, Ali made a false statement on a United States passport application by stating that his Social Security number was 000-00-0000.

Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reductions efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevent and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

United States Attorney Brady commended the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Erie Police Department for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Ali.