by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE, Aug 2– Robert Alcantara was arrested and detained on ghost gun charges, with ghost guns much in the news these day.
He was slated to plead guilty on August 2 so Inner City Press went, the only media in the courtroom.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Vernon S. Broderick asked Alcantara to stated what he had done.
Alcantara recounted that he had bought gun parts - with a license - in Pennsylvania and was driving them back to his home in Rhode Island when he was stopped in New York.
He said he was told is was a misdemeanor, but then "the ATF got involved." They seized his phone.
Alcantara said that he was mailing guns to his native Dominican Republic; he emphasized that he had a handgun license.
Judge Broderick asked if he had neglected to disclose on his gun license application that he is not a citizen.
Alcantar replied that he is a legal permanent resident. It was not clear if that was on his application - but the interchange echoed with a (proposed) diversion disposition in the District of Delaware.
See, today in United States v. Biden (23-cr-61) "at the July 26, 2023 hearing, the parties provided the Court with the Memorandum of Plea Agreement, but did not provide the Court with the Pretrial Diversion Agreement. The Court will docket the signed Memorandum of Plea Agreement and IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDERED that the parties shall docket the Pretrial Diversion Agreement discussed at the hearing by NOON today. ORDERED by Judge Maryellen Noreika on 8/2/2023."
Alcantara's plead agreement is to a guideline of 70 to 87 months. He has been and will remain detained. Sentencing is set for November 15 at 2 pm.
The case is US v. Alcantara, 22-cr-152 (Broderick)
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