Bemidji Man Found Guilty of Felony Assault and Ineligible Possession of a Firearm

A Cass County jury has found a Bemidji man guilty of felony ineligible possession of a firearm as well as felony second-degree assault.

Leech Lake Tribal Police officers testified that law enforcement responded to a house in Cass County on October 14 of last year to investigate a disturbance. An officer arrived at the scene, entered the home, and was directed to a back bedroom.

The officer announced himself and knocked on the bedroom door. When the door opened, 33-year-old Raphael Gurneau was there holding a rifle. Gurneau is not allowed to have any firearms within his possession.

When instructed to drop the rifle, Gurneau told the officer “no”. According to a posting on the Cass County Attorney’s Facebook page, Gurneau then disappeared from the officer’s view. When the officer was able to locate Gurneau, he was no longer holding the rifle and did not comply with the officer’s commands. The officer then grabbed Gurneau and put him on the ground where he was handcuffed.

Gurneau’s sentencing has been scheduled for July 6.