A Houston resident, Tomas Rodriguez, has been sentenced to 90 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani following Rodriguez's guilty plea on April 25, 2024.
U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett issued the sentence, which includes a three-year term of supervised release after imprisonment. During the hearing, evidence presented included body camera footage showing Rodriguez pointing a gun at an officer and surveillance video capturing him assaulting a female victim repeatedly. Testimony from the involved police officer was also heard by the court.
The incident occurred on September 5, 2021, when an officer responded to an assault report near a Houston bar parking lot. Witnesses identified Rodriguez as he fled towards an injured woman lying on the ground. Despite commands to stay down after falling while running, Rodriguez pointed a loaded .22-caliber pistol at the officer who then discharged his weapon in self-defense but did not hit Rodriguez. After discarding his weapon during his escape attempt, authorities apprehended him following a foot chase and recovered the firearm.
Rodriguez is prohibited from possessing firearms due to multiple prior felony convictions under federal law and will remain in custody until transferred to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.
The investigation was conducted by the Houston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with Assistant U.S. Attorney Byron H. Black prosecuting the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is aimed at reducing violent crime through collaboration among federal, state, and local entities to address community-specific crime issues effectively.