A convicted felon who possessed a stolen gun was sentenced today to more than three years in federal prison.
Alex Richard VanErp, age 28, from Faribault, Minnesota, received the prison term after a September 16, 2021 guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a felon.
Facts presented in the case show that VanErp was identified as being involved in a number of thefts in Wisconsin. Law enforcement in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, posted video from one of the thefts on their Facebook page. VanErp was identified from the video by store employees at an implement store in Fayette County, Iowa, while Vanerp was making a purchase. When law enforcement arrived on scene, VanErp attempted to run out of the store and had to be tased to stop the attempted escape. VanErp possessed a stolen firearm taken in one of the thefts from Wisconsin and also possessed methamphetamine. VanErp had previously been convicted of a felony offense involving a financial transaction.
VanErp was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. VanErp was sentenced to 37 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
VanErp is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emily K. Nydle and investigated by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and the Prairie Du Chien Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 6:21-cr-2043.
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