Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ALBERT LOPEZ, 52, last residing in Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 52 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally possessing a firearm and for violating the conditions of his supervised release from a prior federal conviction.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on October 12, 2017, members of the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force located Lopez at a residence in Bridgeport and arrested him on a state warrant in connection with the shooting of a victim in Bridgeport on September 9, 2017, and on a federal warrant related to his violation of supervised release conditions. A search of Lopez’s bedroom on the date of his arrest revealed a stolen .40 caliber pistol. Forensic analysis of the pistol revealed that it was used in the shooting on September 9, 2017.
Lopez’s criminal history, which spans more than 30 years, includes felony convictions in Connecticut state court and in federal courts in both Connecticut and Pennsylvania, and he was on federal supervised release at the time he unlawfully possessed the stolen firearm. Specifically, Lopez has been convicted of assault with a firearm, carrying a pistol without a permit, conspiracy to distribute cocaine, possession of contraband by an inmate, and possession of a firearm by a felon (twice). In September 1991, Lopez was sentenced to 140 months of federal imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute cocaine; in March 2008, he was sentenced to 47 months of federal imprisonment for possession of a firearm by a felon; and in January 2013, he was sentenced to 72 months of federal imprisonment for possession of a firearm by a felon and for violating the conditions of his supervised release.
Lopez has been detained in state custody since his arrest. On July 1, 2021, he pleaded guilty in federal court to unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
Lopez also pleaded guilty in state court to assault with a firearm and was sentenced to eight years of incarceration for that offense.
Lopez will begin serving the 52-month federal sentence today.
This matter was investigated by the Bridgeport Police Department, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren C. Clark and Anastasia E. King.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.