Woonsocket Man To Serve 4 Years For Illegal Firearm Possession

WOONSOCKET, RI — A Woonsocket man has been sentenced to serve four years at the Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI) after pleading to an illegal firearm charge, said Attorney General Peter F. Neronha in a news release Tuesday.

Tahkell Holland, 24, pleaded nolo contendere in Providence County Superior Court to one count of carrying a pistol without a license

Investigators say Holland discarded a loaded Glock 23 .40 S&W pistol and a large capacity magazine while being pursued on foot by Woonsocket police on August 8, 2020. Prior to his arrest, officers saw Holland drinking from a bottle of liquor in a parking lot on Morin Height Boulevard and tried to approach him, but he ran into a nearby wooded area.

“Illegal firearms and large capacity magazines have proven to be a dangerous – and far too often deadly – combination,” said Neronha in a statement. “While illegal firearms have always been the target of law enforcement efforts, large capacity magazines, like the one possessed by the defendant here, are legal in our state. They render illegal firearms even more dangerous, as they give criminals the ability to fire even more bullets at their targets – putting lives, including innocent lives, in even greater danger."

"I am grateful to the Woonsocket Police Department for their partnership with my office and their continued efforts to reduce violence in their city," he continued.

Holland was sentenced to 10 years in state prison with four years to serve and the balance of the sentence suspended with probation.