Brooklyn felon caught with AR-15 and AK-47, faces life in prison

August 6, 2024 Robert Abruzzese, Courthouse Editor

The Federal Building, Post Office and U.S. District Courthouse in Burlington, Vermont: Shane Hardy was arraigned here on charges of illegal firearms possession, facing up to life in prison. Photo: Farragutful/Wikimedia Commons

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Shane Hardy, 45, of Brooklyn, was arraigned in Burlington, Vermont, on federal charges of being a felon in possession of firearms.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont announced that Hardy was indicted on Dec. 21, 2023, and arraigned on Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Doyle, who ordered his detention pending further proceedings.

Court records indicate that Hardy, previously convicted of multiple felonies in New York, including manslaughter, possessed six firearms, including AR-15- and AK-47-type weapons. Hardy allegedly acquired these firearms through a combination of drugs and settling drug debts.

Hardy faces up to 15 years to life in prison if convicted.

The arrest resulted from a joint investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department, and the St. Albans Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Colin Owyang, with Hardy represented by the Office of the Federal Public Defender.