Ricco Lashawn Saine, aged 44 and currently residing in Kingsport, Tennessee, was sentenced to 262 months in prison by United States District Judge J. Ronnie Greer on June 24, 2024. This sentencing took place in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville. Following his incarceration, Saine will be subjected to five years of supervision.
Saine was convicted by a federal jury on November 8, 2023, for being a felon in possession of a firearm, violating 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(1). During the sentencing, Judge Greer classified Saine as an Armed Career Criminal. Saine’s spouse and co-defendant, Tonya Rae Saine, had previously been sentenced to 21 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
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The case details reveal that on August 27, 2021, a Kingsport Police Department officer saw Saine near his vehicle at the Westside Inn in Kingsport, Tennessee. After a police canine alerted to the vehicle, officers searched it and found a loaded firearm inside a bag on the passenger seat, along with Saine’s Tennessee identification card. Further investigation revealed that Tonya Saine had purchased firearms from a federal firearm licensee in Sevierville. Surveillance footage showed both Ricco and Tonya Saine shopping for firearms in October 2021. Tonya Saine, who was legally allowed to purchase firearms, completed the paperwork and bought a pistol, a laser-dot sight, an AR15-style rifle, and ammunition, with Ricco Saine seen carrying the AR15 box out of the store.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) recovered a pistol with a laser sight from Tonya Saine. A text message from Tonya to Ricco Saine saying, “I’ve got your gun and stuff in the house,” was also found. A cooperating witness testified to seeing Ricco Saine with the pistol, identified by its distinctive laser aiming device and markings.
The investigation was conducted by the Kingsport Police Department and ATF, led by Kingsport Police Department officer Mike Slater, a former Task Force Officer assigned to the ATF. Assistant U.S. Attorneys B. Todd Martin and Ryan Blackwell represented the United States in this case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence by fostering trust and legitimacy in communities, supporting community-based organizations to prevent violence, setting strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring results.
For more information, visit the [Justice Department’s website](https://www.justice.gov/usao-edtn/pr/kingsport-woman-sentenced-21-months-lying-atf-form-purchase-firearms-and-providing).
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