Three felons convicted of possession of firearms, ammo, in the Bay Area

By Anna Molin, Bay City News Service

March 1, 2006

Three felons recently convicted of possessing firearms and ammunition face up to 10 years in prison and $250,000 in fines when sentenced later this spring, U.S. Attorney Kevin V. Ryan announced Tuesday.

A federal jury on Tuesday found San Francisco resident Andre Glaser, 26, guilty of knowingly possessing ammunition when he fled from San Francisco Gang Task Force officers seeking to curb gunfire on New Year's Eve in 2004.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Glaser tossed away a loaded ammunition clip before he was caught and arrested.

Glaser is scheduled for sentencing June 6 before U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco.

In a separate case Tuesday, Watsonville resident Armand John Valle, 31, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of ammunition and agreed to forfeit the ammunition he possessed.

Valle was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon in 1996 and acknowledged Tuesday that he was on probation when Watsonville police officers on Sept. 1, 2005, found him in possession of one round of 12 gauge shotgun ammunition and 14 rounds of .22 caliber ammunition.

Police officers responding to a domestic battery complaint by Valle's girlfriend arrested Valle, who was leaving the scene in a car, after they spotted a shotgun in the vehicle. Police also found ammunition in Valle's pockets, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Valle's sentencing is set for May 22 before U.S. District Court Judge James Ware in San Jose.

On Monday, a third felon, John Franklin, 26, of San Francisco, entered an open plea to one count of possession of a firearm.

In doing so, Franklin admitted that he held a loaded .22 caliber handgun in his hands when San Francisco Police officers witnessed him attempting a narcotics transaction in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco on Aug. 2, 2005. When the officers tried to detain Franklin, he ran and disposed of the handgun in front of a parked pick-up truck, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Franklin was convicted in 2003 for inflicting corporal injury upon a spouse or co-habitant, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

His sentencing is slated for May 22 before U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel in San Francisco.

In another unrelated case, a federal grand jury in Oakland on Feb. 23 indicted Vincent Jones, 20, of Richmond, on a charge that allege he knowingly and illegally possessed a Colt model .45 caliber semi automatic pistol on Oct. 1, 2005, despite being a convicted felon, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Jones remains in custody on a no bail warrant. No date has been set for his appearance in federal court.

The prosecutions stem from increased local and federal efforts under the federal Project Safe Neighborhoods program to reduce firearm related violence by cracking down on people who carry firearms and ammunition in violation of federal law, the U.S. Attorney's Office reports.

"These prosecutions are an example of our continuing effort to reduce gang-related violence by cracking down on convicted felons who illegally possess firearms or ammunition," U.S. Attorney Ryan said in a statement. "We will continue to work closely with our partners at the ATF and local police departments to take dangerous criminals off the streets."

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives contributed to these prosecutions.

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