South Bend Man Sentenced to 84 Months in Prison

HAMMOND- Frank Stork, 45 years old, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Senior Judge Jon E. DeGuilio after pleading guilty to being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Stork was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, on January 3, 2021, law enforcement observed Stork driving a vehicle while committing multiple traffic violations. When they stopped him, he physically resisted the officers. A loaded .45 caliber firearm which had been reported stolen in 2019 was recovered from the vehicle. Stork's criminal history revealed he had six prior felony convictions, any one of which prohibited him from possessing the firearm.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Indiana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Task Force with assistance from the Hobart Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Caitlin M. Padula.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.