Serial domestic abuser sentenced to over 10 years in federal prison for illegal gun possession

A serial Twin Cities domestic abuser will spend over 11 years in federal prison following his conviction for possessing firearms as a felon, including machine guns, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson.

Ronnie Bila Shaka, 44, pled guilty and was sentenced to 140 months’ imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release.

Court documents state that on Nov. 2, 2023, officers were dispatched to Shaka’s residence on a report of a domestic dispute involving a firearm. Police ultimately had to force entry into the residence, where they located Shaka along with his pregnant girlfriend and her baby. Shaka had threatened the victim with a “ghost gun” to prevent her from leaving the house.

A search warrant subsequently uncovered five firearms from safes next to Shaka’s bed, along with a large quantity of magazines and ammunition. Two of the firearms were Polymer 80 “ghost guns” without serial numbers that were equipped with machine gun conversion devices (commonly called “switches”) that rendered them fully automatic. Videos located on Shaka’s cellphone showed him firing the handguns with switches outside the residence, with accompanying texts messages where Shaka bragged about how powerful they were.

Shaka has a lengthy criminal history, including violent crimes, which makes him ineligible to possess firearms. Shaka has eight prior felony convictions, and six prior convictions for firearms offenses. His convictions for domestic violence-related offenses date back to when he was 18 years old and include multiple domestic assaults, terroristic threats, and repeated violations of no-contact orders.

“Domestic abusers are among the most dangerous offenders we face,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Thompson.  “They prey on the very people they should protect and in doing so endanger their victims, police officers, and the community as a whole. When someone shows they are willing to terrorize their own family, they have forfeited their right to walk free. More than a decade in federal prison is exactly what this conduct deserves, and it should serve as a warning: we will not tolerate domestic violence and we will hold these offenders accountable before they can destroy more lives.”

Shaka will be required to serve a minimum of 85% of his sentence incarcerated before becoming eligible for parole.

The case was the result of an investigation conducted by the ATF and Robbinsdale Police Department, with assistance from the Crystal Police Department.

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Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.

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