Portsmouth Felon Ryan Duggan Sentenced for Illegal Firearms

NORFOLK, Va. – The gritty streets of Portsmouth were a backdrop for grim justice as 41-year-old Ryan Patrick Duggan was sentenced to seven years in prison for his flagrant disregard of the law.

On April 24, 2023, Duggan was nabbed by the Portsmouth Special Investigations Unit while working on a stolen red moped in the parking lot of Motel 6. His fingerprints were all over two BMW vehicles and a motorcycle, all later confirmed as stolen goods. A K-9 unit zeroed in on one of the BMWs, setting the stage for a deeper dive into Duggan’s criminal empire.

Search warrants were obtained for both vehicles and Duggan’s lodgings. What they found was chilling: a 9mm handgun with no serial number, ammunition, and suspected narcotics, including gabapentin pills, methamphetamine, and fentanyl. The handgun, equipped with a machinegun conversion device, could fire fully automatically.

Detectives also uncovered a cache of weaponry in the BMWs, including shotguns and rifles, as well as more suspected drugs. One vehicle bore a stolen North Carolina plate, further evidence of Duggan’s brazenness.

With nine previous felony convictions, Duggan was already banned from owning firearms or ammunition. His latest transgressions have earned him a lengthy prison sentence, one that sends a stark reminder to the criminal element: in Portsmouth, justice is served.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, along with local and federal law enforcement agencies, celebrated the sentencing of Duggan by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Cheney and Alyssa Miller led the prosecution.