Charlottesville, VIRGINIA – A previously convicted felon, who ran from Charlottesville police while illegally possessing a firearm, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Charlottesville on a federal gun charge, Acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced.
Tory Alexander Thomas, 33, of Charlottesville, Va., previously pled guilty to one count of being a convicted felon illegally in possession of a firearm. Today in United States District Court, Thomas was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release thereafter.
According to evidence presented at a previous hearing by Assistant United States Attorney Ronald M. Huber, on or about May 12, 2016, officers with the Charlottesville Police Department observed the defendant sitting in the passenger seat of a parked vehicle in the parking lot of Blue Ridge Commons. The officers observed the smell of marijuana and approached Thomas in the vehicle. After initially responding to the officers’ commands, Thomas eventually ran from the officers, who observed him throw something from his waistband as he ran away. After locating and arresting Thomas, a detective with the Charlottesville City Police Department located a Diamondback DB380 .380 handgun underneath a bush nearby. The gun was loaded with a round in the chamber. Thomas later admitted in federal court to possessing the gun and throwing it under the bush as he ran from police.
The investigation of the case was conducted by Charlottesville City Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Charlottesville City Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Ronald M. Huber prosecuted the case for the United States.