Fresno, California - A federal grand jury returned an indictment Thursday charging a Turlock man with being a felon in possession of a firearm, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on February 23, Doroteo Gonzales Jr., 25, was found in possession of a loaded handgun. Gonzales was previously convicted of several felonies and was on parole for robbery at the time of his arrest.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Modesto Police Department, the Turlock Police Department, and the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine E. Schuh is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Gonzales faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would 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. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime.