Ohio Woman Pleads Guilty to Straw Purchasing Firearm for Massachusetts Man

            CONCORD - Keri Horan, 37, an Ohio resident who was formerly a resident of Salem, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty in federal court today to purchasing a firearm for Massachusetts man, United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today.

             According to court documents and statements made in court, on September 2, 2015, while living in Salem, New Hampshire, Horan purchased a 9 millimeter handgun from a gun store in Plaistow, New Hampshire, for Justin Weldy, a Massachusetts resident.  In making the purchase, Horan falsely claimed that she was purchasing the weapon for herself.  Weldy previously pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to this incident in Essex County, Massachusetts.

            Horan is scheduled to be sentenced on November 29, 2018.

            “Those who make straw purchases of firearms often are putting guns in the hands of criminals,” said U.S. Attorney Murray.  “In order to combat crime and protect public safety, we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute those who unlawfully buy guns for others.”

            This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, with assistance from the police departments of Haverhill, Massachusetts, and Salem, New Hampshire.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shane B. Kelbley.

            The case is part of ATF’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative, a federally-funded program intended to reduce gun violence through law enforcement training, public education, and aggressive law enforcement efforts to investigate and prosecute gun-related crimes. 

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