# The Greatest Scourge To Ever Land In America



## Thateus (Feb 12, 2015)

Just got this emailed to me from an acquaintance. Interesting to see how some of these gangs are getting their guns.
I never even thought this, I just assume most where being stolen or an occasional illegal buy. I wonder how many are doing it just for a bag of weed.
Yeah, this will be very interesting in the future when marijuana goes legal nation wide.

Oh yeah, I can see some using this to curtail our collective gun rights.
Illicit drugs have been one if not the greatest scourge to ever land in America.

*Ten accused in plot for Maine addicts to buy guns for Connecticut cocaine ring*

The handguns were purchased from pawnshops in Bangor and Brewer, and the straw purchasers were compensated with money and drugs, police allege.

Federal authorities have arrested 10 people and are seeking another person in connection with a Connecticut-to-Maine cocaine ring that used drug addicts in the Bangor area to buy guns for the ring at pawnshops.

The 10 were arrested Thursday after federal prosecutors obtained indictments against them on Feb. 12 in U.S. District Court in Bangor, according to court records unsealed after their arrests.
Additional Images

"There were 11 individuals, five of whom were in custody, five of whom were arrested and one of whom is at large," Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald Clark said Friday.

Clark declined to give more details about the case, but a partially redacted eight-page indictment that was unsealed with other court records Thursday provides some information.

All 11 are accused of conspiring to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine between Jan. 1, 2010, and Aug. 30, 2013.

Four of them - Jeffrey Benton, Christian Turner, Willie Garvin and Jeremy Ingersoll-Meserve - are accused of giving cash to addicts to buy 15 handguns from pawnshops in Brewer and Bangor, according to the indictment.

"It was part of the conspiracy that the straw purchasers made false representations in the forms that the pawnshops were required to keep in connection with the sale of each firearm," the indictment states. "It was part of the conspiracy that the straw purchasers turned the firearms so obtained to defendant Turner and others knowing these persons were not residents of the State of Maine, whereupon the straw purchasers were compensated with currency and controlled substances for engaging in the transaction."

Turner and others would then take the guns to Connecticut for Benton and others to use, according to the indictment.

The indictment identifies 15 guns purchased that way from Feb. 7, 2012, to May 16, 2013, including 9 mm, .357-caliber, .40-caliber and .45-caliber semi-automatic pistols and two .357 Magnum revolvers. They are also accused of obtaining other guns illegally from 2011 to 2012 in private transactions with Maine residents in exchange for drugs.

Benton, 30, of Brooklyn, New York, and formerly of New Haven, Connecticut, is also known as "JT," "Tallman" and "Fresh." He faces five years to life in prison if convicted.

Turner, 29, formerly of New Haven, Connecticut, is also known as "P." He faces 10 years to life in prison.

Garvin, 22, of New Haven, Connecticut, is also known as "Black" or "Tank." He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Ingersoll-Meserve, 37, of Waldoboro, also faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Others arrested include: Jermaine Mitchell, aka "Melo" or "MB," 43, formerly of New Haven, Connecticut and Orono; Torrence Benton, aka "T-Black," 27, of Windham; Jacqueline Madore, 34, of Rockland; David Chaisson, 22, of Bangor; Akeen Ocean, aka "A" or "Alex," 22, of Bangor; and Wendell White, 48, of Rumford.

All remain in custody pending court hearings. The name of the 11th person was redacted from the indictment.


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## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

Big deal. Ever heard of fast and furious? That was our DOJ and that makes these dealers look like grade school kids.
GW


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## Thateus (Feb 12, 2015)

Yeah, I notice how the House Republicans put a lid on it.
I wonder why. Perhaps some things are better left unsaid.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

straw buyers are always going to be a problem. there is no way to stop that other than to completely outlaw guns in this country, and that will never happen. I don't think this is going to be real big problem because you can't get more than one handgun through the background check per week per person. Now it sounds like these guys had several buyers, so there were scoring several guns in a week.


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## Sierra_Hunter (Feb 17, 2015)

You can only buy one handgun a week? When did that happen?


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## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

Sierra_Hunter said:


> You can only buy one handgun a week? When did that happen?


I think it's a Connecticut thing.
GW


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## Sierra_Hunter (Feb 17, 2015)

Ah.. I see. As far as I know I can buy as many as I want here. Well...as many as a I can afford...


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## Bisley (Aug 24, 2008)

It's already illegal to do this, so what good is another law? Oh wait...I forgot. That doesn't matter. Guns are evil - I forget sometimes.


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## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

RK3369 said:


> straw buyers are always going to be a problem. there is no way to stop that other than to completely outlaw guns in this country, and that will never happen. *I don't think this is going to be real big problem because you can't get more than one handgun through the background check per week per person.* Now it sounds like these guys had several buyers, so there were scoring several guns in a week.


Not in my state. I can buy whenever I please. Is this the law for South Carolina?


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

SouthernBoy said:


> Not in my state. I can buy whenever I please. Is this the law for South Carolina?


yup. Unlimited long gun transfers but only one handgun per 7 day period. At least that is the way my FFL transfer dealer has been doing it. Never checked any further because I assumed he should know what he's doing. Now that refers to transfers into SC from other states, such as purchases from an online site shipped to a FFL in SC for delivery to a SC resident. Within the state, I'm not sure if there are any limits. Haven't bought anything locally in so long I'm not sure.


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## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

"South Carolina enacted a one-handgun-a-month law but repealed the provision in 2004."

I found nothing about a seven day period.


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## Thateus (Feb 12, 2015)

RK3369 said:


> there is no way to stop that other than to completely outlaw guns in this country, and that will never happen.


Yeah, I don't think I need to worry about that. If anything it would just impose more cost, which in itself is getting somewhat crazy. When I think of the hoops I had to jump through to get license to carry. Nice little money maker for some States & towns with all the requirements they impose that's for sure.

I'm just highly curious how they can find people who have no criminal records to do this. The ones doing it for the drugs is obvious, when they go to buy their drugs perhaps the dealer is making them a deal. But the fact that they don't have any kind of criminal record is surprising. But then how are these gangs finding the ones who just need the cash. Who are these people, no records ?!

So basically what we have is honest people trading with the gangs. I don't know it just seems so strange.
And then I was reading the other day here on this forum about a guy who was at the range and he notice what he said looked like a gang-banger. He said this banger ask him if the gun he had rented was fully automatic.

So these bangers are going around renting guns to see which ones they like and then getting honest people to buy them for them. This is unreal.
Imagine if we ever did lose our gun rights in America, the honest people would be just as responsible as the criminals.
And something tells me a good many of these honest people are in college or living in suburbia/rural America.

I saw on one of the very popular online gun stores a visible notice about don't lie for the other person.
This email I got makes it very clear now. I could not and would never do it, no matter how desperate I was. And there have been great depurate periods in my life. Seems like in today's America everyone has got some kind of hustle/game going on to make a buck. I once sold newspapers on a median strip & street corner, you talk about humiliation, but I never begged for money. And I never engaged in criminal activity. Some I guess are just to proud or lazy to make an honest buck. I wasn't proud that I had to stand on a corner an occasionally suffer through the insults but at least I was trying and it was honest. And I know in my heart I'm a better person for it.

I suppose in today's America we now have the self-entitlement generations.
And the new national anthem is now becoming lie, cheat and scam your way through.


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## slayer61 (Aug 4, 2014)

SouthernBoy said:


> "South Carolina enacted a one-handgun-a-month law but repealed the provision in 2004."
> 
> I found nothing about a seven day period.


Kalifornia has the 1 in 30 law.


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

SouthernBoy said:


> "South Carolina enacted a one-handgun-a-month law but repealed the provision in 2004."
> 
> I found nothing about a seven day period.


We have a seven-day WAITING period, but I don't think it's limited to one-at-a-time. Will have to check.


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## Sierra_Hunter (Feb 17, 2015)

Who said it's honest people? My brother is a druggie and I happen to know quite a few of his druggie friends who are thieves and what ever else and not one of them has more then a a speeding ticket. 

And even if they do have a record, most states will let you buy a gun with a record short of a felony.


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## Thateus (Feb 12, 2015)

Just think if you ever make it into law enforcement you may have to arrest your own brother uh.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

SailDesign said:


> We have a seven-day WAITING period, but I don't think it's limited to one-at-a-time. Will have to check.


you mean from the time you buy the gun until you can take it with you? SC doesn't have that, but if you're not a CCW holder you have to go through the Federal background check. I don't know if that's where the 'once in 7 days" comes from or not. I'll check with my FFL the next time I'm there.


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

RK3369 said:


> you mean from the time you buy the gun until you can take it with you? SC doesn't have that, but if you're not a CCW holder you have to go through the Federal background check. I don't know if that's where the 'once in 7 days" comes from or not. I'll check with my FFL the next time I'm there.


Yup! Go to the LGS on Saturday, morning, and you can have it the next Saturday - if you wait till after lunch then it's the next Sunday....


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## Sierra_Hunter (Feb 17, 2015)

Thateus said:


> Just think if you ever make it into law enforcement you may have to arrest your own brother uh.


That's my goal. He should have been behind bars long ago.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

SailDesign said:


> Yup! Go to the LGS on Saturday, morning, and you can have it the next Saturday - if you wait till after lunch then it's the next Sunday....


Interesting. I always thought RI and New England in general was largely populated by "cool headed" liberals such as yourself who wouldn't need a 7 day cooling off period to prevent firearm related tragedies. Well, I guess there's more ******** up there than I thought. Those must be the Patriots fans. lol


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

RK3369 said:


> Interesting. I always thought CT was largely populated by "cool headed" liberals such as yourself who wouldn't need a 7 day cooling off period to prevent firearm related tragedies. Well, I guess there's more ******** up there than I thought. lol


They're worried about the ******** that move up here .... And we have plenty of home-grown ones, too. Google "Swamp Yankee"


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

sorry, had to fix the state reference. Was thinking RI but typed CT, then just said "New England in general". Glad you can take a joke.


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

RK3369 said:


> sorry, had to fix the state reference. Was thinking RI but typed CT, then just said "New England in general". Glad you can take a joke.


The difference between RI and CT is that it takes more than an hour to drive through CT. 

Can always take a joke - the mark of a truly civilised person is their ability to laugh at themselves.


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## Thateus (Feb 12, 2015)

SailDesign said:


> "Swamp Yankee"


Lol !
We still have the generation off-spring from the carpetbagging days.
As RK3369 made mention if you carry you pretty much have carte blanche because you have been vetted far deeper than the typical gun owner.
What happens often times has nothing whatsoever to do with a holdup on the Feds or States side, it's the FFL covering their ass if they don't know you. And can't say I blame them. Because everyone associated with that gun is now responsible, just like the bar who serves the drunk who then kills someone out driving.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

Thateus said:


> Lol !
> We still have the generation off-spring from the carpetbagging days.
> As RK3369 made mention if you carry you pretty much have carte blanche because you have been vetted far deeper than the typical gun owner.
> What happens often times has nothing whatsoever to do with a holdup on the Feds or States side, it's the FFL covering their ass if they don't know you.


and that may very well be true. Never needed to get more than one in a week anyhow, so never really pushed the answer.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

SailDesign said:


> The difference between RI and CT is that it takes more than an hour to drive through CT.
> 
> Can always take a joke - the mark of a truly civilised person is their ability to laugh at themselves.


agreed, or to consider an opposing viewpoint as an honest belief. Not necessarily to agree with it, but to consider it as a factual belief of another and give credence to it.


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## Thateus (Feb 12, 2015)

And don't. You may scare them away from dealing with you. I got another one coming shortly but I'll be using a different FFL, cause they give me the stink-eye something bad and on occasion fuck with me real good. And it's cost me more money as well as time and aggravation.
The beauty of my new found FFL transfer is also my chosen indoor range. So that when I pick it up I'll go ahead and do some range time.
(but not with the one I'm picking up)


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

RK3369 said:


> agreed, or to consider an opposing viewpoint as an honest belief. Not necessarily to agree with it, but to consider it as a factual belief of another and give credence to it.


That, too.


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

Thateus said:


> And don't. You may scare them away from dealing with you. I got another one coming shortly but I'll be using a different FFL, cause they give me the stink-eye something bad and on occasion fuck with me real good. And it's cost me more money as well as time and aggravation.
> The beauty of my new found FFL transfer is also my chosen indoor range. So that when I pick it up I'll go ahead and do some range time.
> (but not with the one I'm picking up)



Yeah - the one thing my LGS/Range will NOT allow you to do is clean a gun on the premises. And that includes in their parking lot sitting in your car, as one poor soul found out. Banned for life.

Take it home, read the words if you need to, and clean it there. Fondle it a little if you must, and THEN come back to shoot.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

Thateus said:


> And don't. You may scare them away from dealing with you. I got another one coming shortly but I'll be using a different FFL, cause they give me the stink-eye something bad and on occasion fuck with me real good. And it's cost me more money as well as time and aggravation.
> The beauty of my new found FFL transfer is also my chosen indoor range. So that when I pick it up I'll go ahead and do some range time.
> (but not with the one I'm picking up)


wouldn't bother him. He's pretty much a red neck and doesn't appreciate the interference of the government into anything however, he does abide by the laws, albeit begrudgingly. I've dealt with him for a long time, so it's not an issue.


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