SPRINGFIELD — A Northampton man pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday to charges of illegally possessing a firearm and narcotics following an incident at a Howard Johnson hotel in Hadley in April.
Gabriel Lebron, 35, agreed to plead guilty in U.S. District Court in Springfield to one count of a felon in possession of firearm and ammunition and one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base and heroin. Lebron’s sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 15, 2026.
According to the statement of facts included in the plea agreement filed in federal court on Aug. 28, a woman in the lobby of the Howard Johnson hotel on April 9 called 911 to report a man brandishing a gun while using the FaceTime app on his mobile phone. The man, identified as Lebron, was showing a pistol and stating “I’ll come to your house with this,” while on FaceTime.
A Hadley police officer arrived at the scene and identified Lebron, who by that time had put away his gun, court records state. The officer pointed his own firearm at Lebron and asked him to put his hands up, and Lebron complied.
Two other officers then arrived and took Lebron to the ground. Lebron admitted to having a firearm and that he did not have a license to carry one, court records state. Police said the semi-automatic pistol was loaded with five rounds of ammunition, including one in the chamber. Officers also searched Lebron’s pocket and found 10 “snap caps” of crack cocaine and two bundles of heroin. Lebron was taken to the Hadley police station and his firearm, a Jimenez Arms Model JA, was seized along with the drugs.
At the time of the arrest, Lebron was on federal supervised release for a Vermont firearms conviction stemming from a charge in 2023 for possessing a loaded “ghost gun” (a homemade firearm) with a laser sight and multiple rounds of ammunition, for which he was sentenced to 27 months in prison and three years of supervised release in 2023, according to a statement from U.S. District Attorney Leah B. Foley.
The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base and heroin provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of three years and up to 20 years in prison, up to five years of supervised release and a fine of $1 million.