Michael Wayne Ben, a 38-year-old Houston man and documented member of the 59 Bounty Hunters criminal street gang, is headed to federal prison for 115 months after pleading guilty to illegal possession of multiple firearms and ammunition. The sentence, handed down by U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt, marks the latest chapter in a long criminal saga defined by violence, drug use, and repeated brushes with the law.
Ben admitted March 11, 2019, that he possessed a stolen Glock 19 9-millimeter pistol with a 30-round high-capacity magazine loaded with 20 rounds, along with an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 semi-automatic assault rifle equipped with a double drum magazine capable of holding over 100 rounds. The rifle had 16 rounds of .222 ammunition, including one military-grade tracer round. As a felon with 18 prior convictions, Ben is barred under federal law from owning any firearm.
On October 22, 2018, police spotted Ben driving a 1993 Lincoln Sedan at Deering and Woodfair in Houston and moved to arrest him on an open traffic warrant. He stopped the vehicle but fled on foot, leading officers on a chase through two apartment complexes and a parking lot—jumping over a car hood and a privacy fence before being apprehended days later.
Judge Hoyt granted an upward variance from the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, citing Ben’s extensive criminal record: felony convictions in 1997 (twice), 1998, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2012 (twice), and 2017. Charges spanned possession of controlled substances, burglary, unlawful weapon carry, unauthorized vehicle use, drug manufacturing, and assault of a family member.
The court heard disturbing details of Ben’s past violence— including an incident where he strangled and beat a woman holding a newborn baby after finding another woman’s keys in his pocket, then threw the infant to the floor. In another case, he kicked a woman in the stomach for refusing to get an abortion. He once attempted to swallow 10.22 grams of crack cocaine to avoid seizure and stole a truck, ramming it into a grocery store during a burglary.
Following his 115-month sentence, Ben will serve three years of supervised release. He remains in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility. The investigation was conducted by the Houston Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Laurence Goldman prosecuted the case.
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