8 Years In Prison For Selling Illegal Guns Across Nassau: Prosecutors

MINEOLA, NY — A Westbury man was sentenced on Tuesday to eight years in prison for selling illegal firearms, prosecutors announced.

Gerald Pierre, 40, pleaded guilty on June 1, to first-degree criminal sale of a firearm. Pierre also was given five years of post-release supervision.

"This defendant sold an assortment of incredibly dangerous illegal semi-automatic rifles and assault weapons, including several large-capacity magazines, and then fled the county," said Nassau County DA Anne Donnelly. "Through the diligent efforts of the Nassau County Police Department and my prosecutors, Pierre was apprehended in Philadelphia, extradited, and will now go to prison."

According to the charges, on nine separate dates between October 2020 and January 2022, Pierre sold 14 illegal firearms, including semi-automatic rifles, assault weapons and revolvers.

Seven firearm sales took place in Westbury, one in Uniondale and another in Hempstead, Donnelly said.

Nearly all the firearms were loaded or sold with accompanying ammunition, and many were sold with large-capacity magazines that could hold up to 60 rounds of ammunition.

On January 10, Pierre was arrested by Amtrak Police near Philadelphia for an unrelated matter, and it was discovered that he had an open arrest warrant in New York.

"We continue to make strides in getting illegal guns off our streets and we will not let up in our efforts," Donnelly said.