Bristol Man to Serve 10 Years for Stealing Firearms

A Bristol man who admitted to stealing more than a dozen firearms from a Portsmouth home has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, according to U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha. 

David Welch, 42, also was ordered to serve three years of supervised release after completing his prison term. He pled guilty in July to being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Welch was sentenced on Oct. 1 by U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. He admitted to the court that he broke into the Portsmouth home last December and stole a revolver and four semi-automatic handguns with the intent of selling them. Firearms were seized by law enforcement from his home during a court-authorized search on December 27, 2012.

Welch admitted that before his arrest, he had already sold or transferred several of the stolen firearms. Two of those firearms were later recovered by law enforcement.

The case was investigated by the Portsmouth, Bristol, Newport and North Kingstown Police Departments and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, according to Neronha.

The matter was investigated by the Portsmouth, Bristol, Newport and North Kingstown Police Departments and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.