Guards' murders linked to straw gun purchase

[BIA_Design]

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/ne...8-1475730.html

Guards' murders linked to straw gun purchase

By BRIAN SCHEID
Bucks County Courier Times

The handgun that police claim Mustafa Ali used to kill two armored car guards from Bristol Township in October has been traced back to two Philadelphia men, Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham announced Tuesday.

Jason Lighty, 26, of the 6200 block of Catherine Street, was arrested Nov. 13, and Eric Benson, 25, of the 1500 block of Ellsworth Street, was arrested Dec. 26. Both men face illegal transfer of firearms and conspiracy charges.

Lighty bought the 9 mm handgun at C&C Sports Center in Northeast Philadelphia in July 2003, and then illegally sold it to Benson, a co-worker of his at Enterprise Rent-A-Car at the Philadelphia International Airport, Abraham said. That gun eventually wound up in Ali's hands more than four years later and was the weapon he used in the murders of Loomis armored car guards Joseph Alullo, 54, and William Widmaier, 65, at a botched holdup Oct. 4 at a Wachovia Bank ATM in Northeast Philadelphia, the DA said.

Still, Abraham said it is unclear how, exactly, Ali got the gun.

“We're still investigating how that gun got from Benson to Ali,” Abraham said. “That's still an open, active investigation.”

Ali, who police said has confessed to the killings, is scheduled to be officially arraigned next month.

On Tuesday, Abraham also highlighted 10 other arrests of so-called straw purchasers, or people who purchase firearms illegally for someone else who might be a convicted felon. Felons aren't allowed to own or possess firearms, according to the law. Ali had served federal prison time for bank robberies.

The arrests were made by the Gun Violence Task Force, a unit launched in December 2006 and funded with $5 million a year from the state. The task force investigates illegal guns used in Philadelphia crimes in order to punish straw purchasers.

At Tuesday's press conference, state Sen. Vincent Fumo, D-Philadelphia, who spearheaded the funding for the task force, said straw purchases are the root of gun violence. He called other legislation, such as the controversial one gun per month proposal, a “distraction.”

“The problem in Pennsylvania is illegal gun sales,” Fumo said. “The people that use these guns in crimes are not entitled to have them in the first place. This is attacking gun violence at its source.”

In a phone interview, Ashley Varner, a spokeswoman for the National Rifle Association, said her organization is all for punishing straw purchases, but opposes any new gun laws.

“New laws are unnecessary as long as we are enforcing the current ones and prosecuting gun criminals to the fullest extent of the law every single time,” she said.

State Attorney General Tom Corbett said that similar efforts to combat illegal gun trafficking could soon start in nearby counties, including Bucks. The purpose, Corbett said, is to make it clear that straw purchasers will serve time in jail when they purchase a gun that ends up used in a crime.

“In my opinion, anybody who's a straw purchaser needs to see state prison for a period of time,” Corbett said.

Bucks County District Attorney Michelle Henry said that illegal gun sales are not just a Philadelphia problem.

“We obviously take the matter very seriously,” Henry said.

In September, Thomas John Day Jr. of Falls was arrested on charges of illegally purchasing a shotgun from a Morrisville gun shop and three handguns from a Falls gun shop earlier last year for a confidential informant with the Philadelphia police.

Brian Scheid can be reached at 215-949-4165 or bscheid@phillyBurbs.com.

[Brick]

Here's a gem from Section 6111 (g) 5 & 6

(5) Notwithstanding section 306 (relating to liability for conduct of another; complicity) or any other statute to the contrary, any person, licensed importer, licensed dealer or licensed manufacturer who knowingly and intentionally sells, delivers or transfers a firearm in violation of this chapter who has reason to believe that the firearm is intended to be used in the commission of a crime or attempt to commit a crime shall be criminally liable for such crime or attempted crime.

(6) Notwithstanding any act or statute to the contrary, any person, licensed importer, licensed manufacturer or licensed dealer who knowingly and intentionally sells or delivers a firearm in violation of this chapter who has reason to believe that the firearm is intended to be used in the commission of a crime or attempt to commit a crime shall be liable in the amount of the civil judgment for injuries suffered by any person so injured by such crime or attempted crime.

Please keep an eye on this case as it developes. It will be interesting to see if this section is applied.

[sluggie24]

Holy crap.........they actually got it right for once!

[PisnNapalm]

All thanks to the gun registry.... I mean gun sales registry.

[Philadelphia]

What amazes me is the DA bothered to trace down the straw purchase for once.

When Fast Eddie was pushing his "report stolen guns" BS, Lynne was busy not bothering to prosecute straw purchases anyway.

Maybe she finally got the memo. We don't need more laws; we need to just prosecute the existing ones.

[ExCopInPhilly]

Originally Posted by Philadelphia

What amazes me is the DA bothered to trace down the straw purchase for once.

When Fast Eddie was pushing his "report stolen guns" BS, Lynne was busy not bothering to prosecute straw purchases anyway.

Maybe she finally got the memo. We don't need more laws; we need to just prosecute the existing ones.

+1, and maybe the rest of the state will follow suit, then the country, and then maybe we can get some gun laws that affect the criminal, not you and I.

[reels18]

Originally Posted by ExCopInPhilly

+1, and maybe the rest of the state will follow suit, then the country, and then maybe we can get some gun laws that affect the criminal, not you and I.

Most gun laws already on the books affect the criminals, the new ones seem to be directed at the legal gun owner.

The current laws are not the problem. It is the people entrusted to enforce those laws who refuse to do so, that is the problem.