A St. Paul man has been handed down a total sentence of 87 months in prison, after being convicted for unlawful possession of ammunition and violating terms of his federal supervised release, according to a statement released by U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger. Nakia Marquire Martin, 31 years old, was on supervised release due to a prior firearms conviction when he was apprehended for his new offense.
Following the chain of events detailed in the court documents, Martin alongside a female acquaintance, and her young daughter visited a sporting goods outlet in Woodbury on July 5, 2023. There, the female companion purchased a .40-caliber firearm while Martin slipped a 50-round box of the same caliber ammunition into his possession, subsequently exiting the venue sans the formality of payment, an infraction that has now culminated in a prison sentence.
Felonious histories erect barriers; one such being the perpetual interdiction from firearms and ammunition. For Martin, his past convictions proscribe him from holding such items lawfully at any time – a detail that underscores the gravity of his recent violation. His plea of guilty to one count of felon in possession of ammunition was made on January 4, 2024, which has factored into his current period of incarceration.
The case, which has unraveled with the investigative efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives alongside the Saint Paul Police Department, spotlights the reiterated infringements of a man not unknown to the federal criminal justice system. Presiding over the case, U.S. District Court Judge Ann D. Montgomery ordered that Martin serve a consecutive 10 months for breach of supervised release – this, in addition to the 77 months for the ammunition charge, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office announcement.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Bejar, tasked with prosecution, brought the case to its conclusion after the guilty plea earlier this year. Martin now faces a future marked by confinement and, subsequently, another term of supervised release spanning three years upon his departure from prison walls.
