Philadelphia man charged in straw purchase of firearms
NORRISTOWN, Pa. (CBS) – A 23-year-old Philadelphia man has been arrested in connection to straw purchasing and trafficking firearms, Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele and Cheltenham Township Police Chief John Slavin say. Kareem Reed, of the Spring Garden section of the city, is charged with multiple felony charges.
Police recovered a weapon in a shooting on April 16, 2022, in the Wyncote section of Cheltenham Township from a person under the age of 21. DA Steele also says that the weapon may have also been used in a carjacking in Philadelphia on that same day.
The Glock 23 was not reported stolen or lost, which is why DA Steele and investigators concluded it must have been a straw purchase. A straw purchase conceals the identity of the firearm owner evading a background check by purchasing through a third person.
Investigators connected the gun to a purchase made by Reed on June 20, 2021.
Further investigation revealed that Reed bought four firearms between April 7, 2021, and Nov. 13, 2021. Three firearms were bought at a gun store in Chalfont in Bucks County and one was purchased in Lafayette Hill in Montgomery County.
The DA also says that Reed told his firearm buyers to remove the serial number, another crime.
Reed was charged with unlawful sale/transfer of a firearm, dealing in the proceeds of unlawful activities and obliterating/altering marks on a firearm, as well as a misdemeanor charge of materially false statements to authorities.
The underaged person Reed had sold guns to before had three of the four firearms. Another gun was recovered that Reed sold to a person who goes by the name "Na." The gun was in a car at the Philadelphia Parking Authority impound lot where "Na's" vehicle had been towed.
"Buying and trafficking firearms to criminals is always a threat to public safety and is an egregious crime since the illegal firearms are often used in violent crimes, as this case shows," DA Steele said.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro praised the joint investigation.
"This case demonstrates how illegally trafficking firearms brings violence into our communities, and how collaboration by law enforcement agencies is critical to public safety," he said.
Reed could not post bail and remains in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 22, 2022.