U.S. Department of Justice

United States Attorney
District of Idaho

District of Idaho

www.justice.gov/usao/id

For Immediate Release

November 29, 2010

Boise Gang Member Sentenced for Gun Crime

John Anthony Sanchez, 29, of Boise, Idaho, and a member of the Lost Soul Trece gang,
was sentenced today to 37 months in federal prison for unlawful possession of a firearm, the
United States Attorney’s Office announced. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edward J.
Lodge, who also ordered Sanchez to serve three years of supervised release after he completes his
prison term.

Sanchez pled guilty to the charge on July 27, 2010. During his plea, Sanchez admitted
possessing a Smith and Wesson .44 revolver handgun in Boise on November 6, 2009. Where
Sanchez had been previously convicted of burglary in Ada County, Idaho, he was further
prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law.

Sanchez’s case was investigated by the Treasure Valley Metro Violent Crimes Task
Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives. His prosecution was part of Idaho’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which
seeks to reduce gun violence in Idaho.

Sanchez was prosecuted by the Special Assistant U.S. Attorney hired by the Treasure
Valley Partnership, and housed in the Canyon County Prosecutor’s Office, to address gang
crimes. For the past four years, this program has been very successful in prosecuting Treasure
Valley gang members for violations of federal law, said United States Attorney Wendy J. Olson.
Through the combined resources of the Treasure Valley Partnership and the United States
Attorney’s Office, we are making our communities safer. The gang Special Assistant U.S.
Attorney program has resulted in 112 convictions for violations of federal law since its inception
in 2007. Those 112 defendants have been sentenced to a total of 5,050 months in federal prison.

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