Fresno Man with Four Prior Convictions for Unlawfully Possessing Firearms and Ammunition Faces Federal Charges

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Earnest Donte Ruff, 23, of Fresno, charging him with possessing ammunition after being convicted of a felony offense, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on April 21, 2021, Ruff was arrested and found to be in possession of a loaded .40‑caliber gun with no serial number. Ruff has four convictions for illegally possessing firearms or ammunition.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fresno Police Department Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin J. Gilio is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Ruff faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.