OAKLAND — First he was charged in Alameda County with being part of a burglary crew that hit dozens of East Bay businesses, but now 22-year-old Nathaniel Porter has a federal gun case to deal with.

Porter, an Oakland man, was arrested this month in Berkeley, after missing a court appearance in his burglary case, court records show. He has now been indicted on a charge of possessing a gun as a felon. Prosecutors say he was caught with a pistol while attempting to flee the scene of a restaurant burglary, as he and about 10 other suspects were running in different directions.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas S. Hixson freed Porter, over prosecutors’ objection, at a Tuesday court hearing, records show. Porter also faces two separate burglary cases in Alameda County, charging him with various break-ins around the East Bay. In one of the cases, his co-defendant is a suspected member of the Hayward Original Grip Gettas, or HOGGs, a Norteño subset based in South Hayward, according to court records.

Porter had been caught with a gun earlier, hidden in a toilet of his Oakland home, during a May 2024 police raid, prosecutors allege. He had a prior concealed gun possession conviction that made it illegal for him to have guns, a memo filed by the U.S. Attorney’s office says.

All told prosecutors say the crew has been linked to 32 burglaries in southern Alameda County and another eight in San Pablo. Investigators say the crew distinguished itself by going to various shopping centers and hitting virtually every store there in one fell swoop, rather than singling out one or two businesses.