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Press Release

Maumee Man Charged With Conspiracy, Firearms Charges In 10-count Indictment

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Ohio

A 10-count indictment was filed charging Barry P. DeRan, age 54, of Maumee, Ohio, with conspiracy, making false statements in the acquisition of firearms, and unlawfully dealing in firearms, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

“The laws are very clear about who is forbidden from carrying firearms, and this defendant fell into that category,” Dettelbach said. “We will aggressively pursue those who would violate our nation’s firearms laws.”

DeRan is accused of conspiring with others to obtain firearms from Internet firearms dealers. He falsely identified the actual buyer of the firearms when completing the required firearms transfer records, ATF Form 4473, according to the indictment.

This was done to conceal the fact that DeRan was the actual buyer of the firerarms when he was prohibited from possessing, using, carrying or obtaining any deadly weapons by a Lucas County Common Pleas Court civil protection order, according to the indictment.

Between August 2010 and May 2011, DeRan purchased 11 firearms from an Arizona-based dealer and had them shipped to a licensed Ohio firearms dealer to complete the transfer when a person known to the Grand Jury was falsely identified as the actual buyer when completing Form 4473, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after reviewing factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

The investigating agency in this case is the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Toledo, Ohio. The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Gene Crawford.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Updated March 12, 2015