Wanted fugitive pleads guilty to illegal possession of ammunition
Press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jesse Jay Perez, 29, of Naples, Florida, pled guilty in federal court to possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. The plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
U.S. Attorney Heekin said, “Thanks to the dedication of Gainesville Police Officers, this wanted fugitive is back where he belongs, behind bars. My office is committed to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who unlawfully possess weapons or ammunition and pose a risk to the safety and security of our fellow citizens.”
Court documents reflect that on January 1, 2025, officers of the Gainesville Police Department encountered Perez during a traffic stop and determined there was a felony fugitive warrant for his arrest from the State of California. At the time of the stop, Perez was carrying a backpack that contained a machete, a pellet rifle, a flare gun, 13 magazines, 380 rounds of various ammunition, and all the component parts necessary to build a “ghost gun” assault rifle. Perez is prohibited from possessing any firearms or ammunition as a result of a prior felony conviction.
Perez faces up to fifteen years’ imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Gainesville Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam Hapner.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 30, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. at the United States Courthouse in Gainesville before Chief United States District Judge Allen Winsor.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline), a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
“Operation Take Back America”
Thank Joke Bidumbdumb and all his supporters for creating this mess. How can anyone be so stupid as to choose leadership hellbent on destroying our country is beyond me.
“How can anyone be so stupid as to choose leadership hellbent on destroying our country…” If the average IQ is 100, then half the country is below that and in some areas, it’s far below that. Look around. Look at who NYC is electing.
Notice that all the local convictions for “gun violence’ crimes are coming from the Federal enforcement and justice system. THEY, at least, understand that “gun violence’ is actually criminal violence, unlike the woke incompetents of the local Democrat Party that is ruining AC and GNV.
What made this a federal case? Most times a convicted felon illegaly in possession of a firearm is prosecuted in state court. I wonder if it was the ‘ghost gun’ components that made it federal.
he has a federal felony warrant out of california
I don’t think that’s it. Article doesn’t say anything about the warrant being federal, and if it was he would have been extradited to California first to face the charges there. My guess is he will be turned over to California after he finishes his federal sentence for the charge he got here.
I think crossing state lines to flee the California warrant was all that was needed for the feds to step in.
No most cases involving guns now days are going to federal court depending on the age and the type of guns used it’s a fact
Because he is a felon (has a felon fugitive warrant) and has possession of firearms and ammunitions- it becomes a federal crime and doesn’t matter what state he is in when he gets caught. He will not get transferred back to California.
So, if he pled guilty, there must have been a good offer for a reduced sentence.