Manchester Man Sentenced to 33 Months in Federal Prison for Unlawfully Possessing, Manufacturing, and Selling Firearms

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that ANDREW FRANCOEUR, 36, of Manchester, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant to 33 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for offenses related to his illegal possession, manufacture, and sale of firearms.

According to court documents and statements made in court, as part of an ongoing investigation into the proliferation of privately made firearms (“PMFs” or “ghost guns”) in Connecticut, ATF investigators determined that Francoeur was buying firearm parts from a Missouri company, having the parts shipped to him, and manufacturing guns inside a shipping container on a property in Suffield.  Francoeur sold some of the firearms he manufactured.

In September 2022, while Francoeur was incarcerated in state custody for drug and firearm offenses, investigators searched the shipping container and found tools for manufacturing firearms, gun parts, ammunition, and other firearms-related items.  In November 2022, investigators retrieved two storage bins used by Francoeur that contained firearm parts, a .22 caliber rifle, more than 1,800 rounds of ammunition, 25 high-capacity magazines, M-80 explosives, firearm gear, and other items.

Francoeur’s criminal history includes felony convictions for firearm, drug, burglary, and failure to appear offenses.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

On April 27, 2023, Francoeur pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon, and one count of manufacturing and dealing in firearms without a license.

Judge Bryant ordered that the 33-month federal sentence run consecutively to the state sentence that Francoeur is currently serving.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Reed Durham.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.