Fugitive Sentenced for Loaded Gun in Manchester

Elliott Otero, 34, of Manchester, got a whopping 4 years in the slammer for unlawfully possessing a firearm in Manchester, Connecticut.

On September 25, 2021, Otero was charged in state court with failing to appear in connection with a probation violation as part of his sentence for a 2018 conviction for criminal possession of a pistol/revolver. But that wasn’t the end of it.

On February 25, 2022, employees of a private bail enforcement company encountered Otero outside of a liquor store in Manchester and attempted to apprehend him. During a struggle, a loaded Smith & Wesson .38 caliber pistol fell from his waistband. Manchester Police arrived shortly thereafter and took custody of Otero and the pistol.

Subsequent analysis of the firearm revealed that it had been stolen from a pickup truck in Wolcott in December 2021. This wasn’t Otero’s first rodeo with the law, folks. His criminal history includes state felony convictions for firearm, robbery, and larceny offenses.

Otero pleaded guilty in federal court to unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon on February 15, 2023. He’s been detained in state custody since his arrest. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Connecticut Violent Crime Task Force and the Manchester Police Department.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program that focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford. Otero will also serve three years of supervised release after his prison stint. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine E. Boyles.