GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) — A man accused of shooting a federal task force member who was trying to execute a search warrant in Mississippi has been indicted on nine charges, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
Joseph D. Sonnier, 31, of Gautier, Mississippi, faces four counts of assault on a federal officer or employee of the government, four counts of discharging a firearm in connection with a violent crime and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and FBI Special Agent in Charge Michelle Sutphin said in a news release.
Sonnier’s initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge John Gargiulo in Gulfport is scheduled Aug. 6.
Authorities said Sonnier, on July 21, shot at a member of the U.S. Marshals Service Task Force outside a hotel in Gautier, hitting him in the neck. The agent, whose name was not disclosed, was treated at a nearby hospital for his injury and later released.
At the time of his arrest, Sonnier was wanted in Hancock County for two counts of kidnapping, two counts of aggravated assault, armed robbery and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, The Sun Herald reported.
If convicted on the new charges, Sonnier faces up to 20 years in prison on each count of assaulting a federal officer, up to 10 years for being a felon in possession of a firearm and 10 years on each count of discharging a firearm in connection with a violent crime.
Comments