A CT man was found with a loaded ‘ghost gun.’ Now he faces return to prison.

A Bridgeport man who is a convicted felon faces another return to prison after being found with a “ghost gun” while out on supervised release, according to federal authorities.

Timothy Staton, 28, appeared in court in Hartford on Tuesday and pleaded guilty to charges of unlawful possession of ammunition by a felon and to violating the conditions of his supervised release, according to the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

Staton was found in possession of a loaded semi-automatic 9mm ghost gun on Dec. 13, 2022 and arrested by police in Bridgeport, just seven months after he was released from federal prison on supervised release. In Connecticut, convicted felons are not allowed to be in possession of any firearms.

At the time of his arrest in December, Staton was at the beginning of a three year supervised release period. He had been sentenced to 37 months in prison in June 2019 after he pleaded guilty to charges of illegally having a firearm as a convicted felon. He had been arrested in Sept. 2018  after he allegedly discarded a 9mm handgun during a police pursuit, officials said.

Staton’s criminal record in Connecticut spans more than a decade.

He was arrested by police in Bridgeport in November 2018 and was sentenced in 2020 to 731 days in prison after pleading guilty to criminal possession of a pistol or revolver, according to court records.

A few months earlier, he had been arrested in Bridgeport and charged with possession of narcotics with intent to sell and carrying a pistol without a permit. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to one year in prison for the firearms charge and two years for the narcotics charge, records show.

The year before, Staton was arrested and charged with interfering with an officer. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to one year in prison, records show.

Staton’s criminal record dates to 2012, when he was arrested in Bridgeport and later found guilty of racketeering, conspiracy to sell hallucinogens or narcotics and illegal transfer of a pistol or revolver and other drug related charges and was sentenced to 12 years in prison, suspended after five years served, records show.

Staton now faces up to 15 years in prison for the firearm offense, plus additional penalties for violating the conditions of his supervised release. His sentencing has not yet been scheduled and he has been in custody since his arrest in December, officials said.