Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that a federal jury has convicted Emmanuel Feaster, 21, of Rochester, NY, of being a felon in possession of a loaded handgun. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean C. Eldridge and Charles E. Moynihan, who handled the prosecution of the case, stated that on September 27, 2015, Rochester Police Department officers, in the area of Jefferson Avenue, saw Feaster driving an all-terrain vehicle northbound on Jefferson Avenue, in the southbound lane. When officers attempted to stop the defendant, he drove the ATV onto the sidewalk and ran after being directed to produce his driver’s license. After a brief foot chase, Feaster fell to the ground and tried to get back up. The defendant struggled as officers tried to place him in handcuffs. During the struggle, Feaster threw a metal object under a vehicle parked nearby. Officers retrieved a .380 caliber semiautomatic handgun, which was loaded with six rounds of ammunition, from under the vehicle. Analysis by the Monroe County Crime Laboratory determined that DNA found on the gun belonged to the defendant. In November 2013, Feaster was convicted in Monroe County Court on a felony weapons offense and was prohibited from legally possessing a firearm or ammunition.

The trial verdict is the result of an investigation by the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Ciminelli, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ashan Benedict. Sentencing is scheduled for June 20, 2018, at 4:00 p.m. before Chief Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr., who presided over the trial of the case.

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