BOSTON – A Bloods gang member from Lynn, Mass. pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to possessing a loaded machinegun that was recovered from his backpack in January 2025 during a motor vehicle stop.
Delvyn Liriano, 19, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns scheduled sentencing for Sept. 10, 2025. Liriano was indicted on March 5, 2025.
According to court records, Liriano is a known member of the Bloods gang. In late December 2024, Liriano traveled into rival gang territory in order to confront rival gang members with a firearm. At the time, Liriano was on state probation for a 2023 felony firearm conviction in Lynn, where he pointed a firearm in the face of a former girlfriend and threatened to kill her, based upon his belief that she had associated with a rival gang member.
On Jan. 3, 2025, Liriano was observed entering a motor vehicle at his residence in Everett carrying a black backpack. Following a motor vehicle stop for a revoked registration due to lack of insurance, the black backpack carried by Liriano was found to contain a loaded Glock Model 27 firearm with a selector switch (also known as a machinegun conversion device) attached. Liriano was then placed under arrest. Based upon the presence of the selector switch, the firearm was capable of firing fully automatic and was therefore a machinegun. A subsequent search of Liriano’s cellular phones revealed pictures of him in possession of other firearms.
The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and the Lynn, Malden and Everett Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Mallard of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.
