Mexican National, illegally present in the U.S., sentenced to prison for unlawful firearms possession

Seattle - A 25-year-old Mexican national was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to two years in prison for unlawful possession of a firearm, announced First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd. Arturo Perez Ramirez was arrested by Seattle Police on December 1, 2024. He was driving a stolen car in south Seattle. He was the sole person in the car and was stopped after a short police chase. A Firearm was later found in the vehicle. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said, "Terrorizing a community is not something we can tolerate."

According to records filed in the case, Ramirez was brought to the U.S. from Mexico as an infant. He had multiple run-ins with the law as a juvenile and as an adult. Ramirez is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a conviction for attempted robbery. He was sentenced to more than 57 months in prison in February 2023.

In asking for a 37-month sentence prosecutors wrote to the court, "His convictions run the gamut from violent robberies and firearm offenses to stolen cars, escapes, thefts, and eluding. He spent a considerable amount of his youth detained in juvenile facilities. If facing criminal justice system consequences served as a deterrent for the defendant, he would not be facing deportation to a country in which he has not resided since infancy."

Ramirez likely will be referred to removal proceedings following prison. Judge Martinez stressed that should he return to the U.S. he would face increasingly longer sentences.

The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.