A 46-year-old Los Angeles man has been sentenced to federal prison after he was found intoxicated outside a St. George, Utah Denny’s restaurant with two firearms, according to prosecutors. Francisco Andrade Santio, who was barred from possessing firearms because of prior felony convictions, pleaded guilty earlier this year to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
According to a Department of Justice statement, Santio was sentenced to 64 months’ imprisonment, with the sentence imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen. KUTV reported that Santio was sentenced to more than five years in prison along with three years of supervised release.
Per KUTV’s reporting, officers were dispatched to the Denny’s in St. George on March 20, 2025, where they found Santio intoxicated outside the restaurant with two firearms. The station’s report states that he had been inside the restaurant holding a bottle of whiskey and vaping from a THC pen, and that, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he was stroking one of the waitress’s arms before a restaurant employee asked him to leave.
Traffic Stop Led to Discovery of Weapons
The same account describes Santio attempting to drive away after leaving the restaurant, prompting officers to stop him. He refused to perform a field sobriety test and was arrested for driving under the influence, the report states. Officers then searched his vehicle and found two firearms and ammunition inside, according to the outlet’s account.
KUTV’s report also describes Santio as having a violent criminal history that includes multiple felony convictions, which legally prevented him from possessing a firearm. In February, he pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, per the same account.
Federal Statute and Sentencing Trends
Federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 922 bars convicted felons from possessing firearms or ammunition, among other restrictions tied to the statute. A related penalty provision cited from 18 U.S.C. § 924 notes that certain violations can carry fines up to $25,000 and prison terms of at least 15 years, though the specific qualifying circumstances for that higher penalty were not detailed in the available excerpt.
Santio’s 64-month sentence falls within a broader trend tracked by the U.S. Sentencing Commission, which found that the average sentence imposed in Section 922(g) firearms cases rose from 60 months in fiscal year 2021 to 72 months in fiscal year 2025, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission. The commission also reported that the average guideline minimum climbed from 68 months to 81 months over that same period.
Santio’s case is not the only recent federal firearms sentencing tied to Utah. A separate case reported by KUTV noted that another previously convicted felon was sentenced to three years in prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a restricted person.
