DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
District of Maryland

For Immediate Release

Monday, December 14, 2015
Rod J. Rosenstein
, United States Attorney
Contact: AUSA Vickie E. LeDuc or Marcia Murphy

Man Arrested in Penn-North One Week After Baltimore Riots Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for Federal Gun Charge

False Reports of Police Shooting Incited Bystanders on May 4, 2015; Defendant Also Committed Assault Five Weeks Earlier

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz sentenced Robert “Meech” Tucker, age 24, of Baltimore, today to 42 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegal possession of a gun by a previously convicted felon. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William P. McMullan of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby; and Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis.  

“Mr. Tucker threw a loaded gun on the ground and it fired, then he pretended to be injured. His actions incited misguided bystanders who attacked innocent police officers,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. “This case shows the challenges that police officers sometimes face as they work to protect the community and save lives.”

According to court documents, on May 4, 2015, a citizen notified police officers that a man was armed with a handgun in the Penn-North section of Baltimore, near a pharmacy that was burned during street riots the previous week. Officers alerted the CitiWatch camera operators, and a camera operator located Tucker, who matched the description.

The camera operator confirmed that Tucker was displaying characteristics of an armed gunman. Officers then drove their marked patrol car into the area. When the patrol car stopped, Tucker ran. Tucker then removed a handgun from his waistband area and threw it to the ground, causing it to fire. Fortunately no one was hit by the bullet. Police arrested Tucker and recovered a .357 Magnum revolver handgun loaded with two live rounds and one spent cartridge casing.

Meanwhile, bystanders wrongly shouted that a police officer shot Tucker in the back, people yelled and threw bricks and bottles at police officers, and a television network mistakenly reported that the police had shot Tucker.

Tucker was transported to the hospital, but he was not injured.

Tucker also admitted that five weeks earlier, on March 29, 2015, he committed an assault in violation of state law. In that incident, CitiWatch cameras in the area of Penn-North recorded Tucker striking a man in the back of the head with his fist. The man fell to the ground and was injured. The man was taken to the hospital and treated for his injury. The camera operator continued to monitor Tucker until he was located by Baltimore Police officers and arrested.

Baltimore Field Division