A Juneau man was sentenced to prison for a 2019 incident in which he pulled a gun on a police officer before being disabled with a stun gun.
Pharoah Akhenaten, 41, was sentenced to six years imprisonment by U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess for illegal possession of a firearm and prior felony convictions, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The charges stem from an incident when a Juneau Police Department officer stopped Akhenaten in a vehicle early on the morning of Oct. 22, after receiving reports of suspicious activity involving the vehicle earlier, according to the DOJ. The officer attempted to contact Akhenaten at that point.
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“During this contact Akhenaten pretended to have a diabetic condition and got out of the vehicle indicating he was going to throw up,” according to the DOJ. “The officer was advised that Akhenaten had an active arrest warrant. He vigorously resisted the officer’s attempt to place him under arrest, spitting into the officer’s face and pushing the officer backwards onto the ground.”
Akhenaten then advanced on the officer with a firearm, according to the DOJ.
“The officer was able to discharge a taser hitting Akhenaten, who then got back into his car and started it,” according to the DOJ. “Additional officers arrived on scene and arrested Akhenaten, who was wearing an empty holster. The officers found a firearm loaded and chambered in the vehicle floorboard.”
Akhenaten was arrested for assault on a police officer, possession of a firearm as a felon, and resisting arrest, the Empire previously reported.
“Pursuing and prosecuting violent offenders is one of the highest priorities of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners,” said U.S. Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr. in a news release. “And anyone who attacks or endangers law enforcement officers as they work to keep the public safe will face severe penalties, as reflected by this substantial sentence.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Schmidt prosecuted the case.
• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at (757) 621-1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.
