Man facing 3 years for having gun
Priors yield state prison
Priors yield state prison
Friday, October 13, 2006
Man facing 3 years for having gun
Priors yield state prison
By Gary V. Murray TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
[email protected]
WORCESTER— A Maywood Street man is facing a minimum of 3 years in state prison after being convicted yesterday of unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition.
A Worcester Superior Court jury deliberated for about two hours before finding Tex K. Nyamekye Jr. guilty of possession of a .380-caliber semiautomatic handgun and several rounds of ammunition without a firearm identification card.
The charges stemmed from an Oct. 18, 2005, police search of Mr. Nyamekye’s third-floor apartment at 51 Maywood St. that resulted in the seizure of the firearm and ammunition. While each of the charges for which he was convicted normally carries a maximum sentence of 2 years in the House of Correction, Mr. Nyamekye, 27, was indicted under a section of the law that calls for enhanced penalties for firearms violations committed by a person with a prior conviction for a crime of violence.
Judge Peter W. Agnes Jr. found after a second, jury-waived trial that Mr. Nyamekye was the same Tex K. Nyamekye Jr. who was convicted of assault with a dangerous weapon on May 7, 1998, in Worcester Superior Court. That finding by the judge subjected Mr. Nyamekye to enhanced penalty provisions that call for a sentence in his case of not less than 3 years nor more than 15 years in state prison.
Still pending against Mr. Nyamekye, a reputed gang member, are charges stemming from an Oct. 17, 2005, shooting on Falmouth Street and the discovery of 36 grams of cocaine during the same search that yielded the handgun and ammunition.
Prosecutors allege that Mr. Nyamekye fired five shots at 27-year-old Shaonte Bottom on the night of Oct. 17 in front of 11 Falmouth St., leaving bullet holes in the vehicle she was driving. The woman, who was not injured, identified Mr. Nyamekye as her assailant.
The pending charges against Mr. Nyamekye include armed assault with intent to murder and cocaine trafficking.
At the request of Mr. Nyamekye’s lawyer, Henry F. Owens III, and Assistant District Attorney Michael J. Ball, Judge Agnes postponed Mr. Nyamekye’s sentencing until Monday and ordered that he be held without bail until then.
Mr. Owens said it was possible that the remaining charges against his client, as well as a pending violation of probation matter, could be resolved at that time. Judge Agnes said the assault with intent to murder charge would be tried Monday if no agreement is reached.