Rochester Felon Pleads Guilty to Possessing a Firearm and Ammunition
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Charles Mobley, 25, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge David G. Larimer to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassie M. Kocher, who is handling the case, stated that in the early evening hours of May 23, 2020, Rochester Police Officers responded to the area of 31 Lenox Street for a report of male with a gun. As officers approached the area, they observed defendant grab his waistband and run. Officers gave chase but momentarily lost sight of the defendant in the backyard of 81 Lenox Street. Mobley was ultimately located in a nearby garage on Lenox Street. Other officers searched the defendant’s path and located a loaded semiautomatic pistol with an obliterated serial number.
In October 2014, Mobley was convicted in Monroe County Court of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree and sentenced to 42 months in jail. As a result of that conviction, the defendant is legally prohibited from possession a firearm and ammunition.
The case was brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office as part of its Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative. 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.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Acting Chief Mark Simmons, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division.
Sentencing is scheduled for December 2, 2020, at 2:00 p.m. before Judge Larimer.
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