Fresno, California - Miguel Alberto Burgos, 28, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty Thursday to being a felon in possession of a firearm, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Jan. 18, 2021, a law enforcement officer stopped Burgos for committing traffic infractions while driving a vehicle in Bakersfield. Burgos yielded his vehicle and fled on foot. The officer gave chase and eventually secured Burgos on the ground, but he broke free and continued flight. Shortly afterwards, officers caught and arrested Burgos. During the chase, Burgos possessed and discarded a Ruger LCP .380‑caliber handgun loaded with a high-capacity magazine. Burgos cannot lawfully possess firearms because he was convicted in 2013 of second-degree robbery.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Highway Patrol and the Kern County Fire Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher D. Baker is prosecuting the case.

Burgos is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Sept. 3. Burgos faces a maximum term of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, 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.