Manassas Woman Sentenced To 18 Months For Illegally Buying And Selling More Than 31 Handguns In 15 Days

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Kimberly Yvette Dinkins, 44, of Manassas, Va., was sentenced to 18 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for dealing firearms without a license.

Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Carl J. Vasilko, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Washington Field Division, made the announcement after the sentencing by United States District Judge Claude M. Hilton.

            According to documents filed in connection with the case, Dinkins purchased 31 firearms – all handguns – on three consecutive weekends from Nov. 17 through Dec. 1, 2012.  She purchased these firearms at three separate gun shows in Chantilly, Richmond, and Hampton, Va.  Dinkins, who was not a federally licensed dealer of firearms, purchased the handguns with the intention of selling them for profit.

            Filings associated with the case state that the firearms bought and sold by Dinkins were eventually recovered from juveniles and felons who utilized the firearms during drug trafficking schemes.  Specifically, on Nov. 30, 2012, local law enforcement in Prince George’s County, Md., recovered one of the firearms bought and sold by Dinkins from a 20 year old Maryland man during the course of a narcotics investigation.  On Dec. 12, 2012, local law enforcement in Prince George’s County recovered a second firearm bought and sold by Dinkins from a 19 year old Maryland man, again during the course of a narcotics investigation.  Both Maryland men have pleaded guilty to possession of firearms-related charges in Maryland state court. 

This investigation is being conducted by ATF’s Washington Field Division.  Special Assistant United States Attorney L. Rush Atkinson and Virginia Assistant Attorney General and Special Assistant United States Attorney Marc J. Birnbaum are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.