A Boston man with a previous felony record has been sentenced to time served plus 10 days after pleading guilty to charges of carrying a loaded firearm at an MBTA station, as per a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The man, identified as Pepo Herd El, 51, from Dorchester, was subject to approximately 49 months in prison following his sentence by U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs, and will also face three years of supervised release after his time behind bars.
Herd El, who was taken into custody on Thanksgiving Day 2020 on gun possession counts, entertained sovereign citizen beliefs deemed generally anti-government; during a bus ride from his Dorchester home to the Ruggles MBTA station, law enforcement stopped and searched him pursuant to a search warrant where they found a semiautomatic pistol, additional magazines, various rounds including some armor-piercing ammunition, and other tactical gear, as reported by the Justice Department.
The proceedings stem from a history of state convictions dating back to 2004 that prevent Herd El from legally bearing firearms and ammunition, noted United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy in collaboration with the Boston Police Department, ATF, and other agencies. At the time of his arrest, he allegedly told authorities he was en route to a Thanksgiving dinner.
Further investigation into Herd El’s residence uncovered more incriminating materials. Alongside another loaded magazine, law enforcement found diagrams of firearm components and suppressors, notes on explosive creation embedded within a chemistry book, and various tools suitable for ammunition manufacturing. This evidence clearly indicates Herd El's involvement with more than just the firearms he possessed, as revealed in court documents by the Boston Field Division of the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Beck and Timothy Kistner, members of the National Security Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Tolkoff of the Criminal Division also contributed to the prosecution.
