PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Federal law enforcement officers have indicted more than a dozen people whom they say were running two different “iron pipelines" from the Southern U.S. to Philadelphia. In total, nearly 400 guns were brought up to city streets.
One group is from Georgia, while the other is from South Carolina.
The feds said the groups separately bought the firearms in those respective states & drove them up to Philly, in order to resell them.
“Almost 400 firearms (were) illegally trafficked to Philadelphia, made available on the black market to people who aren’t lawfully allowed to purchase guns, each with the potential to destroy many lives,” said U.S. Attorney for Eastern District of Pennsylvania Jennifer Arbittier Williams.
They said one group in Georgia run by Frederick Walton used Cash App, Apple Pay & bank transfers to get more than $100,000 in payments from Philadelphia-based suspects including Kenneth and Edwin Burgos and Roger Millington. They all have criminal records in Philadelphia.
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The weapons purchased in these cases were utilized in non-fatal shootings and linked through the NIBIN system to other criminal events that occurred here in the city, officials said.
“Some of these firearm purchases are single purchases. Some were multiple purchases. It varied throughout the investigation and the specific purchasers,” said Matt Varisco, the ATF’s special agent in charge.
“Unfortunately, there are dozens of these weapons still on the streets of Philadelphia,” he added. “Every scheme that we don’t identify, those weapons are unfortunately being used in crimes, and the Philadelphia Police Department has to take them off individuals that shouldn’t be possessing them.”
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The other group from South Carolina was run by Muhammad Allen Ware and sold about 100 guns, according to federal investigators. That group would travel to the Delaware Valley to sell the guns to Haneef and Jabril Vaughn.
“If you participate in illegal firearms trafficking to Philadelphia, we will find you,” said Arbittier Williams. “We will pursue a federal investigation and prosecution, and you will go to prison for a very long time.”
All of the 14 defendants face the counts of conspiracy to deal firearms without a license and making false statements. Each could face years behind bars.
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Kenneth and Edwin Burgos were also charged with dealing firearms without a license, which carries an additional max of 10 years in prison.
Edwin Burgos and Millington both have aggravated assault and conspiracy convictions. Another suspect, Ernest Payton, had previously been convicted of a dozen offenses in Philadelphia including weapons charges.
Federal officials warn that they are continuing their investigation to see how widespread these two pipelines go.
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