Felon sentenced to 2 years in federal prison for illegally possessing loaded handgun while on pre-trial release for state firearm case (DOJ)

CHICAGO - A felon has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for illegally possessing a loaded handgun while on pre-trial release in a state firearm case.

ANTONIO TUCKER, 22, possessed the loaded handgun on June 14, 2025, in a relative's apartment in Chicago. During an argument with the relative, Tucker threw an object at the relative's head and then picked up the loaded handgun. Another relative intervened, allowing the victim-relative to safely flee the apartment and call Chicago Police, who arrived on the scene and discovered the gun on a bed in a room where Tucker was staying. Tucker had been residing in the relative's apartment while he was on pre-trial release for a firearm case pending in state court.

While federal authorities were investigating this case, Tucker pressured other relatives from jail to encourage the victim-relative to recant their statements to police and avoid giving truthful testimony before a federal grand jury. Tucker was ultimately indicted in federal court on a charge of illegal possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon, to which he pleaded guilty in May 2026.

On Aug. 5, 2026, U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah sentenced Tucker to two years in federal prison. The sentence fell in the middle of the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines range.

The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Christopher Amon, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives. The Chicago Police Department provided valuable assistance. The investigation was conducted in coordination with ATF's Crime Gun Intelligence Center of Chicago. The CGIC is a centralized law enforcement partnership that focuses exclusively on investigating and prosecuting violent offenders who utilize firearms in commission of their crimes in Chicago and throughout northern Illinois. Every firearm-related case in Chicago is processed through the CGIC on a daily basis.

"Defendant is a felon who is not permitted to possess a gun under any circumstances, but the circumstances in which he committed this offense were particularly dangerous," Assistant U.S. Attorney Sushma Raju argued in the government's sentencing memorandum. "He kept a loaded gun in his bedroom and brought it out in the midst of a domestic incident. But for the intervention of the family member who urged defendant to back down (and the quick arrival of the police thereafter), defendant's actions may have caused the fight to escalate even further and led to one or more family members being hurt."