INDIANAPOLIS — A man who pleaded guilty to six counts of making false statements in connection with the acquisition of a firearm and one count of dealing in firearms without a federal license was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison on Monday.
DeAngelo Carnell, 24, was accused of purchasing 19 firearms from different gun retailers in the Indianapolis area over the course of six transactions from April 2021 through May 2021.
It was part of a “straw purchase” scheme, which is when a person not prohibited from buying a firearm tells a federally licensed gun dealer the firearm is for themselves but is really for someone else.
Frequently, authorities said those purchases are made for someone who is prohibited from purchasing or possessing a firearm.
In Carnell's case, he allegedly told police that he was buying the firearms for himself.
But during a June 28, 2021, interview with a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives agent, Carnell allegedly admitted that he purchased all but one gun for other people.
Carnell said most of those transactions were set up through Instagram.
On one occasion, Carnell allegedly met subjects from Chicago and Gary, Indiana, at a gun store to illegally by guns for them.
Carnell admitted that he charged a $50 fee for each illegal purchase, and that it was common for him to purchase handguns for young people who were unable to legally buy a gun because they were under the age of 21.
Carnell also admitted that buying and selling firearms was his sole source of income from April 2020 through June 2021.
The judge also ordered Carnell to three years on probation after being released from prison.