Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
MURRAY — Federal and state law enforcers warned Utahns against lying on paperwork to buy a gun Wednesday, saying those who "lie-and-try" might find themselves behind bars.
"Do not lie to buy a gun. It's not something we're going to tolerate," said Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera.
Rivera joined Utah U.S. Attorney John Huber, Debbie Livingston special agent in charge with, special agent in charge with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and others at TNT Guns & Range to highlight several recent indictments against individuals and business owners who allegedly bought and sold guns illegally.
Felons, people with domestic violence convictions or who have protective orders in place against them are among those prohibited from having guns.
Federally licensed firearms dealers who sell or transfer guns to a restricted person, allow a straw buyer to purchase a gun for someone else or fail to keep proper sales records could also face criminal charges.
Officials unveiled oversize clipboards for filling out federal forms for a gun sale with this warning: "Use your name to buy a gun for somebody else. Go to federal prison for up to 10 years."
"Sometimes people lie with the hopes that it will not be detected and that they can come into the possession of a firearm here in a store like this," Huber said.
Tanner Nattress, TNT Guns & Range owner, said members of his staff do everything they can to ensure they doesn't sell guns to people who are prohibited from owning them.
"Sometimes it's hard to tell if someone's lying. We don't hook everyone up to a lie detector test. We use our best effort," he said. "Everything that we do is to help people do it the right way."
The store submits a potential buyer's information to the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation for a background check. The transaction continues or ends depending whether the person is approved or denied, Nattress said.
Nattress said his staff has declined to sell a gun to someone on its own a handful of times during it's two years in business.
"We've politely told people we didn't feel comfortable," he said.
Federal prosecutors recently charged six people for alleged "lie-and-try" efforts to buy guns. Five of them indicated there were not convicted felons knowing that wasn't true, according to the indictments. The sixth falsely claimed he had never been convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, prosecutors said.
Do not lie to buy a gun. It's not something we're going to tolerate.
–Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera
A federal grand jury indicted two firearms dealers last week for allegedly selling guns to a prohibited person and allowing a straw buyer purchase a gun for someone who is restricted from owning a gun under federal law.
In another indictment, a dealer faces charges for allegedly failing to keep proper records, specifically selling guns without noting the name, age and address of the buyer.
"A firearm in the hands of a gang member with a felony conviction or someone convicted of domestic violence is a recipe for more violent crime," Huber said.
