Interstate Gun Ring Nets 7 Suspects In New Jersey
CAMDEN, NJ (CBS) -- Seven people are charged with running an illegal gun ring that ferried weapons legally purchased in Ohio to Camden, where they were allegedly dealt to criminals.
The purported ringleader, 25-year-old Chucky Scott of Columbus, Ohio is accused of using a friend, 26-year-old Anthony Hammond also of Columbus, to buy the weapons. The pair would use five middlemen in Camden to sell them at a huge profit.
Police say 17 of the 30 or-so weapons sold over the last year have been recovered, and some went for upwards of $2,000.
"We are committed to putting an end to this iron pipeline of illegal firearms coming into this state, whether it's from Ohio or other states, where individuals are buying guns in this manner and then selling them to criminals," New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal told KYW Newsradio.
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Ohio's gun laws are far less restrictive than New Jersey's, considered among the toughest in the nation.
"Simply put, each gun that we seize or take off the street is a life or multiple lives that we save in that process," Grewal added.
The other five defendants involved are identified as Eduardo Caban, Eric Moore, Jamar Folk and Darren Harville of Camden and Tymere Jennings of Marlton.
Each defendant faces 10-to-20 years if convicted of racketeering. Officials say Scott could get double the time for being the alleged ringleader.
