Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Tampa Armed Career Criminal Convicted at Trial for Possessing a Firearm and Ammunition
TAMPA, Fla. — United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Ivan Lamar Vasquez (39, Tampa) has been found guilty, following a bench trial before United States District Court Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell, of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Lamar Vasquez qualifies for enhanced penalties under the Armed Career Criminal Act. He faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years, up to life, in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Jan. 30, 2024. Lamar Vasquez was indicted on Feb. 21, 2021.
According to evidence presented at trial, on Oct. 26, 2020, members of the Tampa Police Department (TPD) executed a search warrant at Lamar Vasquez’s residence in Sulphur Springs. TPD officers observed Lamar Vasquez flee from the residence at the time of the search and apprehended him shortly thereafter. Inside the residence, officers discovered a loaded Keltec pistol bearing a latent fingerprint belonging to Lamar Vasquez. Lamar Vasquez’s DNA was also recovered from the firearm. At the time, Lamar Vasquez had multiple prior felony convictions for delivery of cocaine and is therefore prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David W.A. Chee, David P. Sullivan and Callan L. Albritton.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities and measuring the results.
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