GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A Kentwood man has been sentenced to 24 months in federal prison for illegally purchasing and trafficking firearms. He is 23-year-old Trevell Walker.
According to the Department of Justice, Walker ran an illegal gun trafficking business. Walker’s customers would pay him to lie on firearm purchase forms, and say that he was buying the guns for himself, when he was really buying them for other people. This tactic is referred to as “straw purchasing.”
Walker knew that his customers were prohibited from buying guns due to being convicted felons. He used his lack of criminal history to purchase the guns, and sold them for profit.
At Walker’s sentencing, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Jonker also imposed three years of supervised release following his incarceration.
“Straw purchasing and gun trafficking drive a dangerous black market for firearms,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “These crimes feed the violence that plague communities across Michigan. My office will hold straw purchasers and illegal gun traffickers accountable for creating these supply lines of violence.”
“These are serious consequences that come from illegally purchasing firearms for prohibited individuals,” said ATF Detroit Special Agent in Charge James Deir. “The woman and men of ATF work side by side with our U.S. Attorney’s, federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to make our communities safer.”
