SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash – Federal agents and Spokane-area law enforcement agencies teamed up to bust several people, suspected of bringing illegally purchased guns into the area.
Federal prosecutors indicted four people on gun trafficking and related charges.
According to the criminal complaint filed in federal court, the investigation started with ATF agents doing surveillance on “The Lewis & Clark Gun Show in Post Falls, Idaho, which had been identified as a significant source for firearms being trafficked into Eastern Washington.”
The ATF agent focused on four men and a 16-year-old. The investigator says he witnessed the group appearing to shop for someone on the phone, showing them an AR-type rifle.
The investigator watched one man pull out a stack of money and distribute it to the others, saying the men split up and would speak to different vendors, always coming back together to discuss.
The ATF agent said he saw the men buy several firearms, including a shotgun, an AR-style rifle and a handgun.
The agent said the teenager indicated to a vendor he wanted to buy a firearm.
“The vendor told him that he would need to see a form of identification from ‘somebody’ so he could fill out a receipt,” the agent wrote in the criminal complaint.”The group looked at each other with apprehension, and then the vendor stated something to the effect of, ‘Don’t worry, I won’t run it, it’s just for my receipt.'”
The agent followed the men when they went to their car. He followed them into Washington and pulled them over on the side of Highway 195 in Whitman County.
Another vehicle connected to the group was also pulled over.
When searching the vehicles, agents found 11 firearms, along with ammunition.
The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office says another vehicle connected to the group was pulled over. SCSO says the two men inside were identified as Norteno gang members from Sunnyside, Washington who are both prohibited from possessing firearms.
At least two of the men were carrying Mexican voter’s cards. One had a Washington driver’s license, but also has a criminal history that shows he was deported from the U.S.
Investigators say one of the men was also carrying 1.5 grams of cocaine.
The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office says the investigation was conducted by the Regional Anti-Violence Enforcement & Narcotics (RAVEN) Task Force, made up of federal agents and local law enforcements officers.
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