Department of Justice

SOUTH BEND – Brandyn Blacharski, 29 years old, of Mishawaka, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Blacharski was sentenced to 71 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, in August of 2020, Blacharski was involved in a shooting in Mishawaka. He left the scene of the shooting in order to dispose of the firearm and was eventually arrested with the firearm in his possession. Blacharski had at least four prior felony convictions and was out on bond for a burglary case at the time of this offense.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with the assistance of the Saint Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit, South Bend Police Department, Mishawaka Police Department, Berrien County Michigan Sheriff’s Department, and Cass County Michigan Sheriff’s Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank E. Schaffer.

This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime