A 37-year-old man has been sentenced to federal prison in connection with an April 2023 incident in which he fired a gun into the air outside of a San Francisco bar, and appeared to point a gun at arriving police officers.

Honduran national Fernando Aguilera was convicted at a bench trial in February of being a felon in possession of a firearm, and being a felon in possession of ammunition.

According to a Department of Justice release, during the April 7, 2023 incident, Aguilera, "took a gun out of his waistband on two occasions at a crowded bar in San Francisco." The Chronicle identifies the establishment as El Trebol Bar on 22nd Street in the Mission District.

"He then left the bar and fired into the air two separate times with people and cars nearby," the DOJ says.

SFPD officers said that Aguilera pointed something at them that appeared to be a firearm as he tried to escape arrest. And he was soon found hiding behind a fence in a nearby yard. "Law enforcement found a firearm with the wrong caliber bullet stuck in the chamber next to Aguilera and ammunition in his bag," the DOJ says, and the bullet stuck in the chamber suggests that Aguilera's gun may have misfire, and that may have in fact wanted to fire at police.

At the time of his arrest, Aguilera already had a conviction on his record for second-degree burglary, and other prior felony convictions for being an accessory, and for being a felon in possession of ammunition.

Judge William Alsup sentenced Aguilera to 45 months in federal prison, in addition to three years of supervised release. Aguilera has already spent two years and four months in custody, and his defense attorney reportedly argued that he should be sentenced to time served and given leniency due to his past substance abuse.

As the Chronicle notes, because of the violent nature of the crime, Aguilera could face deportation as well.