Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Malheur County Armed Career Criminal Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal Prison for Possessing a Firearm and Ammunition
EUGENE, Ore. – Ramiro Martinez Tristan, 40, of Ontario, Oregon, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Chief Judge Ann Aiken to 15 years in federal prison for unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition. Upon his release from prison, Tristan will be on supervised release for five years.
U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall praised the sentence imposed on Tristan stating, “Ontario and Eastern Oregon are better places with Ramiro Tristan removed from the community. This case is the result of the excellent collaboration between the Ontario Police Department, the High Desert Drug Enforcement Task Force, Oregon State Police, the Malheur County District Attorney’s Office, ATF, and my office. Coordination between federal and state partners is key to prosecuting the most dangerous criminals and keeping our communities safe, and my office is committed to working with our local partners to achieve these results.”
On September 10, 2013, Ontario, Oregon police officers executed a search warrant at an apartment where Tristan was staying and found, among other things, a stolen .40 caliber handgun next to Tristan’s identification card. A search of recovered cell phones revealed photographs of Tristan displaying bundles of cash and holding a handgun. Officers booked Tristan into the Malheur County Jail. Officials later learned that around the time of his September 10 arrest, Tristan had secreted methamphetamine in his rectum, brought the methamphetamine into the Malheur County Jail, and distributed it to other inmates.
Tristan has a significant criminal history with prior felony convictions for multiple assaults, felon in possession of a firearm, and burglary in the second degree. Under federal law, any person who possesses a firearm or ammunition after being previously convicted of three violent felonies or felony drug trafficking crimes is an Armed Career Criminal and faces a 15-year mandatory minimum sentence.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan J. Lichvarcik prosecuted this case.