Pennsylvania officials announced arrests related to the illegal purchase and sale of 94 guns. deannadurante has the details:
Police arrested Larry Williams, 44, who is the alleged leader of the operation. Williams himself is banned from buying, owning, or possessing firearms because of past convictions. He recruited a group of mostly 20-year-olds to buy the guns which were then sold to people who are prohibited from buying firearms, investigators said. Some of the trafficked guns have already been used to commit violent crimes, according to Acting Pa. Attorney General Michelle Henry.
Police arrested eight suspects from Philadelphia on dozens of felony charges related to straw purchases of firearms, illegally transferring firearms, and operating a corrupt organization. A straw purchase is when a person with a clean background record buys a gun for another person to hide who will actually own it. The real owners are often people with criminal records, domestic violence offenders, juveniles, and people with mental illness.Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
Under Williams' guidance, the purchasers allegedly bought 94 guns and attempted to buy 23 others, according to Henry. Law enforcement officials have recovered 29 of the trafficked guns, which means 65 are still unaccounted for. Officials recovered the firearms using search warrants related to other criminal activities. Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said getting the remaining guns back is a priority due to fears they could be involved in future crimes.
The group purchased about half of the guns at gun shows across Pennsylvania, including the Oaks Gun Show in Montgomery County where members of the organization bought 13 guns over two days from seven federally licensed gun dealers, investigators said. Williams attended the gun show, directing purchases and providing rides, according to law enforcement.
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