Luis Alberto De Los Santos, Federal Firearms Charge, Rhode Island 2026

A Dominican national has been sentenced in federal court in Rhode Island for unlawful possession of a firearm.

Luis Alberto De Los Santos, 23, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Melissa R. DuBose to 12 months and one day imprisonment. De Los Santos pleaded guilty on February 5, 2026, to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

As part of his sentence, De Los Santos faces possible deportation charges.

According to information presented to the court, De Los Santos is a citizen of the Dominican Republic who entered the country on a travel visa in 2021 and was required to depart the U.S. in 2022.

On April 25, 2025, Providence Police observed De Los Santos with a group of individuals in the Hartford neighborhood. De Los Santos, who was wearing a ski mask, fled from police with the firearm before discarding the weapon behind a building and continuing to flee. Through their investigation, law enforcement discovered the defendant had been in possession of a .22 caliber pistol.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney G. Michael Seaman.

The matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Providence Police Department.

De Los Santos, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, was required to depart the U.S. in 2022 after entering the country on a travel visa in 2021.

This investigation is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ri/pr/dominican-national-sentenced-federal-firearms-charge