DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
District of New Jersey

For Immediate Release

Monday, November 1, 2021
Rachael A. Honig (Acting)
, United States Attorney

Union County Man Admits Illegal Possession of Ammunition

NEWARK, N.J. – A Union County, New Jersey, man today admitted illegally possessing ammunition, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced. 

Kevin Cordeiro, 34, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, pleaded guilty today to an indictment charging him with one count of possessing ammunition after having been previously convicted of a felony offense.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

On Feb. 27, 2021, Cordeiro fired multiple gunshots toward an occupied vehicle that was parked on Westfield Avenue in Elizabeth. Law enforcement officials recovered eight .45 caliber shell casings from the shooting scene. After the shooting, Cordeiro fled to Florida and was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service on March 29, 2021. Cordeiro was previously convicted of second-degree robbery in New Jersey Superior Court, for which he was sentenced to six years in prison.

The count to which Cordeiro pleaded guilty carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for March 9, 2022.

Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey L. Matthews in Newark; special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark; the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor William A. Daniel; and the Elizabeth Police Department, under the direction of Chief Giacomo Sacca, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.  Acting U.S. Attorney Honig also thanked the U.S. Marshals Service, under the direction of U.S. Marshal Juan Mattos Jr., for its assistance.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Frazer and Samantha C. Fasanello, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.
 

Newark Field Division