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William Dong pleaded guilty in Hartford federal court to transporting an assault weapon into Connecticut in violation of federal law, said U.S. Attorney Deirdre M. Daly.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in September 2013, Dong traveled to Pennsylvania, and purchased a Bushmaster model XM-15-E2S, .223-caliber semi-automatic rifle, which he transported back to Connecticut.
This firearm is considered a prohibited assault weapon under Connecticut state law.
On Dec. 3, 2013, West Haven Police arrested Dong in the vicinity of the University of New Haven after he was found in possession of two handguns in his possession, and the Bushmaster rifle, which was seized from his nearby car.
Dong told police that he had purchased the rifle from a seller in Pennsylvania in September 2013 through an advertisement placed on www.armslist.com.
Although it is not unlawful under federal law for an individual to possess this Bushmaster firearm, it is a federal violation for an individual to purchase this firearm outside of Connecticut and travel into the state with it, because it is a prohibited firearm under Connecticut state law.
Don has been detained since his arrest last December.
He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford on Jan. 29.
On Oct. 17, Dong pleaded guilty in Milford Superior Court to state firearms offenses related to the December 2013 incident in West Haven. He was sentenced to eight years in prison, suspended after two years as well as five years of probation. He will be required to register with the state's deadly weapon offender registry.
On Dec. 13, a witness noticed the stock of a rifle in Dong's vehicle and called police after seeing him run toward campus, which was placed on lockdown. Dong, a commuter student who lived in Fairfield, was apprehended after walking out of a class.
A police search of his home on Stratfield Road in Fairfield that day turned up 2,700 rounds of ammunition and a collection of clippings about the deadly 2012 shootings at a theater in Aurora, Colo.
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