Dorchester man admits he got off a bus at Ruggles packing a loaded gun, magazines and plenty of ammo

A man accused by the feds of trying to assemble a collection of explosives in his Dorchester home pleaded guilty yesterday to two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition for his arrest by federal agents at the Ruggles T stop on Thanksgiving, 2020.

Pepo Herd El, also known as Pepo Wamchawi Herd, 51, who espouses Black sovereign-citizen beliefs - including his right to carry weapons - has been held in custody ever since, most recently at a federal prison medical center in Butner, NC, where doctors only declared him "restored to competency" - and so able to face potential trial - last month, according to court records.

El now faces up to ten years in prison at his Jan. 2 sentencing, the US Attorney's office in Boston reports. His time locked up since his arrest would be credited towards whatever sentence he gets.

El was charged as a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition under federal law because of several convictions in 2004, including two for possession of firearms without a license, the US Attorney's office says. He was convicted on Oct. 27 of that year on six total counts, related to an incident in 2003 in which he fired a gun for which he didn't have a license at a tree, and served at least two years locked up, according to court documents.

El was arrested around 1:40 p.m. on Thanksgiving, 2020, after he got off a bus from Dorchester, wearing a bullet-proof vest under a jacket with "Security" written on it and packing "a loaded semi-automatic pistol, a laser sight, three spare magazines, 45 rounds of ammunition, a knife, and an infrared camera," the US Attorney's office says. Agents, who had already put him under surveillance, had a warrant to search him. He allegedly told agents he was on his way to a Thanksgiving dinner.

As he was being arrested, federal agents were raiding El's house on McLellan Street in Dorchester. According to the US Attorney's office:

During a subsequent search of Herd El’s Dorchester residence, another magazine loaded with armor-piercing rounds was recovered. Additionally, various drawings of gun barrel designs, firearms suppressors and bullets were on the apartment walls. In the kitchen and dining area, various tools that could manufacture ammunition were found. A chemistry book containing handwritten notes about the materials needed to make TNT and C-4 was also found.

Five of the bullets were designed to pierce armor, according to his indictment.

In July, 2021, a federal magistrate judge ordered him held pending bail:

Given the extensive amount of weaponry, ammunition and explosives found at the defendant's residence and on his person, the risk to the public if he were to be released is quite great, especially given his erratic emotional behavior. Moreover, given the defendant's repeated assertion that he should not be tried by any court, this court does not believe that he is likely to comply with the court's orders. In addition, given the lengthy sentence the defendant faces, the risk that he will flee is also great.

As psychiatrists at the Butner facility monitored him for his potential competence to stand trial, El filed a number of motions with the judges presiding over his case in Boston, requesting the case be dropped and that he be declared to have a Second Amendment right to carry weapons. He also repeatedly asked that his court appointed attorney be dismissed - and at one point threatened to sue her.

His motions, however, were all dismissed because the judge declined to dismiss his court-appointed attorney and people represented by counsel are not allowed to file their own motions in federal court.