Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Former Turtle Creek Man Sentenced to Nearly 4 Years in Prison for Possessing Two Firearms while on Parole for Homicide as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods
PITTSBURGH, Pa – A former resident of Turtle Creek, PA has been sentenced in federal court to three years and 10 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, on his convictions on a federal firearms charge, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed the sentence on Hashim Rashad, age 28. Rashad was detained after his initial appearance and will remain detained as he begins to serve his sentence. Rashad was on state parole for manslaughter when he committed the offense he was sentenced for today.
Accordingly to information presented to the court, on October 18, 2017, City of Pittsburgh Police executed a search warrant at a home on Larimer Avenue in Turtle Creek, PA while Hashim Rashad was detained in the house. Police recovered an EZ9 9mm handgun with an obliterated serial number from the couch of the location. Police then recovered a Bryco Arms Jennings J-22, 22LR handgun, inside a purse in the living room of the house. The Bryco Arms Jennings 22 handgun was previously reported stolen. Prior, to possessing these firearms, Rashad was previously convicted of voluntary manslaughter, a crime punishable by more than one year in jail.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Lanni is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police – Narcotics and Vice Unit conducted the investigation leading to the sentence in this case.
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