Detroit Man Sentenced For Unlawfully Possessing A Firearms In West Virginia
Friday, February 14, 2025, 6:45 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
CHARLESTON, W.VA.- On Thursday, February 13, 2025, Tristian Gerrell-Robert Murphy, 36, of Detroit, Michigan, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Irene C. Berger to 35 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release for being a Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm, Convicted Felon.
According to U.S. Attorney Will Thompson, and documents filed with the District Court, on June 10, 2024, members of the St. Albans Police Department conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle being driven by Murphy in St. Albans, West Virginia.
Police Officers Find Multiple Handguns
During the traffic stop, Police Officers found a loaded Smith & Wesson .380-caliber handgun under the driver’s seat of the vehicle and a loaded Taurus 9mm handgun in the trunk. Police Officers also located a third handgun, a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol, in the glove compartment of the vehicle.
During his plea allocution, Murphy admitted that he had recently purchased the two handguns and to possessing the third handgun discovered in the glove compartment of the vehicle.
Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from owning or possessing a firearm or ammunition. Murphy knew on June 10, 2024, that he was prohibited from possessing the firearms due to his prior federal felony conviction for conspiracy to commit a Hobbs Act robbery in the Eastern District of Michigan on October 21, 2021.
In that case, Murphy participated in a nationwide crime conspiracy that was responsible for dozens of “smash and grab” robberies targeting jewelry stores throughout the U.S. Murphy was convicted for his role in a robbery of a jewelry store in Jacksonville, Florida, as part of this conspiracy, Murphy and his co-conspirators entered the store while armed with hammers, smashing glass showcases and stole diamonds and other jewelry. During that robbery, a store employee was pushed to the floor and dragged to another part of the store.
At the time Murphy possessed the three handguns, he was serving a term of supervised release as a result of his October 21, 2021, conviction.
U.S. Attorney Thompson commended the investigative work of the St. Albans Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives for successfully prosecuting Murphy.
