PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Three area men have been charged with more than 500 felony counts after allegedly buying guns using an Army soldier's stolen identification.
The men are accused of running an identity theft, forgery and gun trafficking operation.
Police say 22-year-old Taalibudeen “Taalib” Ibn Hasdn Anderson and 23-year-old Tariq Anderson of Philadelphia, along with 21-year-old Daijon Griffin of Wilmington, Delaware stole Shaheim Dontez Mitchell’s ID and allegedly used it to make illegal gun purchases online.
Authorities say Mitchell is an active duty soldier who lost his wallet in April. He promptly reported his lost Army ID to his superiors.
Officials claim the three men used that ID to buy 14 guns online between June 17 and July 6, which they then picked up from a Wyndmoor gun shop. When the Andersons tried to pick up 14 more guns on July 12, their background check was delayed by law enforcement. They left the Montgomery County gun shop in a Lyft, but they were pulled over by police and arrested. Griffin was later arrested in Wilmington by federal marshals.
Related
Ten boxes of firearms were found in the Andersons’ East Germantown home, with serial numbers matching guns bought under Mitchell’s name, in addition to ammunition, stolen bank cards, laptops, printers, checkbooks and blank security paperwork that police claim were used for the identity theft and forgery operation.
Of the 14 firearms the group successfully purchased, only three have been recovered by police so far. One was seized from a defendant who lived near the Andersons, during a drug trafficking arrest. Another was recovered in a traffic stop, while the third was found during the search of a vehicle involved in a July 22 shooting.
“These defendants were arming criminals, plain and simple,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele in a statement. Pennsylvania Attorney General Anthony Henry echoed Steele, while noting the trio “exploited the identity of a soldier serving his country.”
All three men have been charged with conspiracy, forgery and identity theft, among other felonies. They also face hundreds of misdemeanor counts.
A preliminary hearing for the Andersons has been scheduled for August 29. Griffin will be arraigned after he’s extradited to Montgomery County.
Related
