Arizona man sentenced to one year in prison for illegally possessing a firearm

              ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Carlton Craig Sandoval, 39, of Window Rock, Arizona, and a member of the Navajo Nation, was sentenced to 12 months and 1 day in prison on Dec. 2 after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in Indian Country.

              On Jan. 1, police encountered Sandoval after responding to a 911 call from Navajo, New Mexico, reporting a fight outside a group of homes. Officers found Sandoval at the scene sitting in the driver’s seat of a vehicle, where he refused to comply with officers’ inquiries and requests. An officer observed an open beer can and a rifle on the front passenger seat. The officers arrested Sandoval, who was prohibited from possessing firearms based on previous felony convictions.

              Sandoval pleaded guilty on June 3. Upon his release from prison, Sandoval will be subject to three years of supervised release.

              The FBI investigated this case with assistance from the Window Rock Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Flores prosecuted the case.