An Ogden man with a prior conviction has been found guilty by a federal jury of illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Michael Anthony Rangel, age 42, faced charges following a traffic stop in July 2022, during which officers discovered he was carrying a Taurus PT111 G2 pistol despite being barred from such possession due to his felon status.
Detailed in court documents, and as unveiled in trial proceedings, Rangel was indicted this past September; he was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by the Ogden Metro Gang Task Force when the firearm and bullets were seized and, it was later discerned neither was locally sourced and the gun had crossed state lines, prompting federal jurisdiction. Rangel's sentencing is scheduled for a future date not yet disclosed at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse before U.S. District Court Judge Howard C. Nielson, Jr., United States Attorney Trina A. Higgins relayed the conviction news.
The Ogden Metro Gang Task Force spearheaded the investigation that led to Rangel's conviction, and two prosecutors, Special Assistant United States Attorney Branden B. Miles and Assistant United States Attorney Luisa Gough, represented the government in this case. Their efforts link back to the larger initiative, Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is a collaborative endeavor aimed at quelling gun and violent crime, bringing to bear the collective resources and attention of law enforcement at all levels with community outreach.
Launched on May 26, 2021, the Department of Justice employed a violence reduction strategy that sought to not just serve as a judicial hammer but also as a hand extended in prevention investing in community organizations working, boots in the ground toward the goal, leading by principles of trust and legitimacy in neighborhoods, establishing strategic enforcement priorities and subsequently evaluating the impact of these interventions, and according to the official Project Safe Neighborhoods site, the aim is to make neighborhoods safer for all.
