A judge’s gavel for the files.
A New Haven man has been sentenced to more than 5 years in prison after he allegedly seen firing a handgun at a Connecticut gun range in a Facebook video, according to federal prosecutors.
The U.S. Attorney’s office said 28-year-old Michael Weinstein had previous convictions in state court that included criminal possession of a gun, first-degree robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery.
Under federal law, those convictions made Weinstein ineligible to possess ammunition that had moved across state lines in commerce, the U.S. attorney’s office said.
Weinstein pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of ammunition by a felon in July of last year, after he was arrested on a federal complaint in November of 2020.
Court filings show the case hinged on whether the ammunition Weinstein allegedly had in his possession the day of the range trip was made by a company in Idaho, which would have meant a violation of federal law if he had it.
The incident came to light after a New Haven police officer serving on a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives task force spotted the alleged video on Weinstein’s Facebook account, according to the complaint.
When investigators obtained the waiver forms from the Oct. 14, 2020, gun range trip, they found Weinstein had allegedly answered “no” on the form where it asked if he had ever been convicted of a Class A or B felony.
Surveillance footage from the shooting range also allegedly shows Weinstein handling and shooting the ammunition made in Idaho, according to court filings.
Weinstein was sentenced Tuesday to 65 months in federal prison, the U.S. attorney’s office said. His sentence includes three years of supervised release. The office said he has been in custody since Nov. 18 of last year, when he was arrested on state drug charges while on bond .
Peter Yankowski is a breaking news reporter for Hearst Connecticut Media. He previously reported for the Danbury News-Times and, before that, the Ridgefield Press.

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