Rt. 422 driver draws prison for illegal gun
NORRISTOWN » A former Lower Pottsgrove man is headed to state prison after police found a loaded gun in his vehicle after a chase on Route 422 in Upper Providence, according to court documents.
Nate Paul Boggs Jr., 31, who once listed an address in the 2100 block of Buchert Road, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 28 months to five years in a state correctional facility after he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of person not to possess a firearm in connection with the May 26, 2017, incident on eastbound Route 422 between the Collegeville and Oaks interchanges
in Upper Providence.
Judge Steven C. Tolliver, who accepted a plea agreement in the case, ordered Boggs, who also listed an address along Alden Street in Philadelphia, to report to prison on June 22. The judge also ordered that the .25-caliber handgun seized from Boggs be forfeited to the district attorney’s office “for destruction.”
An investigation began about 10:40 a.m. when state police at Skippack on routine patrol on eastbound Route 422 observed a Honda Accord, operated by Boggs, traveling in the passing lane and following another vehicle too closely.
When the state trooper activated his lights and siren in an attempt to make a traffic stop near the Route 29 off ramp, Boggs failed to stop and traveled at speeds reaching 115 mph at a time when there was heavy traffic on Route 422, according to the criminal complaint. Boggs, police alleged, traveled onto the right-hand shoulder of the highway as he passed multiple other vehicles.
The Honda sedan drove back onto Route 422 east twice and then quickly swerved back onto the shoulder of the busy highway. As the trooper approached the Oaks off ramp he observed the Honda “spun out” in the grassy median separating the on and off ramps for Route 422, according to the criminal complaint filed by state police Trooper Jason Henley.
Police observed Boggs exit the vehicle and flee on foot up an embankment. A short time later, police were dispatched to the Oaks Medical Center on Cresson Boulevard, adjacent to Route 422 eastbound and found Boggs on the third floor of the medical building where he was taken into custody.
Police subsequently searched Boggs’ vehicle and found multiple articles of clothing in the cabin and trunk areas of the sedan. At that time, Boggs told troopers he was homeless.
During the search, police found a loaded .25-caliber stainless steel handgun with a round in the chamber inside a blue coat pocket, according to the criminal complaint. Police also found a jar that contained a clear bag of suspected marijuana.
In court papers, police and prosecutors alleged Boggs did not possess a valid concealed carry permit and also had a previous felony drug conviction and therefore was prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Other charges of fleeing and eluding police, recklessly endangering other persons, possessing a small amount of marijuana and numerous summary traffic violations were dismissed against Boggs as part of the plea agreement.