Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio man was sentenced to 125 months in federal prison Wednesday after a federal jury convicted him in February for one count of felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dante Delray Vecera, 33, was found unresponsive in a locked and running vehicle blocking two lanes of traffic on the 410 frontage road. Police officers observed a bag containing white powder, a marijuana cigarette, and a bag of what appeared to be black tar heroin inside the vehicle. The officers provided Vecera with Narcan, fearing an overdose. While waiting for EMS to arrive on scene, officers looked for Vecera’s driver’s license in an attempt to identify him and located an unholstered, loaded pistol in the pocket of his pants. While officers were removing the weapon, Vecera regained consciousness. He refused all field sobriety tests and was taken into custody after being medically cleared.
Prior to this arrest Vecera had been convicted of several violent felonies, including two prior Nevada convictions for burglary and sexually motivated coercion, and a Texas conviction for violation of a protective order and assault.
U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, San Antonio Police Department and the Castle Hills Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Karina O’Daniel and Amy Hail prosecuted the case.
This is a Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Initiative case. VAWA was first enacted in 1994 as part of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. It initially focused on providing resources and training to improve the responses and policies of law enforcement, prosecutors, and courts, to support victim services, and to address crimes historically treated as private matters. Recognizing that domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking require a coordinated community response that extends beyond the justice system, Congress subsequently reauthorized VAWA, enhancing its policies and expanding grant funding streams, in 2000, 2005, 2013, and 2022. The Office on Violence Against Women has issued more than $11 billion in funding authorized by VAWA in its lifetime.
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