On Parole For Attempted Murder, Felon Was Caught With An Illegal 'Ghost Gun'

MOUNT PLEASANT, NY — A convicted killer who was caught with an illegal gun, won't be getting his hands on another firearm for a long time.

Westchester County District Attorney Susan Cacace announced on Friday that 53-year-old Francisco Hernandez was convicted of felony second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He was found guilty last week after a jury trial.

Hernandez was arrested on March 4 in the Town of Mount Pleasant, after he was found to be in possession of a loaded 9mm "ghost gun." At the time of his arrest, Hernandez was on parole after serving 25 years for second-degree attempted murder.

He faces up to 15 years in state prison when he is sentenced on Dec. 5.

"Thanks to the tremendous efforts of the multiple law enforcement agencies involved in this joint investigation, a violent offender is off our streets and another deadly ghost gun has been removed from our community," Cacace said. "This investigation underscores the importance of New York State’s GIVE initiative."

The arrest was made after a collaborative investigation by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), the Westchester County District Attorney's Office, the Mount Pleasant Police Department, and the FBI Safe Streets Task Force.

The investigation was made possible in part due to the nationally recognized Gun Involved Violence Elimination (GIVE) initiative, which provides state funding to local law enforcement agencies for equipment, overtime and personnel, and provides training and technical assistance to those agencies. The GIVE initiative is a component of New York's comprehensive plan to reduce shootings and firearm-related violent crime in communities outside of New York City.