Waterville Man Convicted of Firearms Charges

Bangor, Maine: Acting United States Attorney Richard W. Murphy announced that Iulian Petre, also known as Julian Petre, 50, of Waterville, was convicted yesterday of illegally receiving and shipping firearms following a jury trial in U.S. District Court. He was found not guilty of smuggling and money laundering charges.

Court records and trial evidence revealed that in 2012 and 2013, Petre purchased and received firearms from out-of-state sellers intending to unlawfully export them. He shipped some of these firearms to Romania. The export of these firearms required authorization from the U.S. Department of State, which the defendant knowingly failed to obtain.

Petre faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.

The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security.