Haley, Collins Charged in Alabama Gun Straw Purchase Scheme

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A cross-state gun trafficking scheme unraveled in federal court this week as Dayquan A. Haley, 23, of Boston, Massachusetts, and Darius Marquise Collins, 25, of Boston, Massachusetts, were arraigned Wednesday on charges of conspiracy to falsify information on firearm acquisition records. The case, prosecuted in the Northern District of Alabama, exposes a calculated effort to bypass Massachusetts gun laws using Alabama straw purchasers.

Three Alabama men — Michael Tiree Coleman, 24, of Tuscaloosa; Jeremy Bernard Brown, 30, of Tuscaloosa; and Demarcus Montez Walker, 25, of Tuscaloosa — served as the middlemen, purchasing 42 handguns from Wade’s Jewelry and Pawn between November 2019 and March 2021. Coleman also bought three firearms from Blue Bore Armory in Demopolis, Alabama. All three falsely claimed to be the actual buyers, a federal offense punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Haley and Collins, barred from buying handguns in Alabama due to residency restrictions, funneled money to the straw purchasers and paid them for their role in the scheme. The guns were then transported to Boston, where several were later recovered in criminal investigations. On March 11, 2020, Haley was stopped in South Carolina and found in possession of 14 firearms — all purchased by Walker from Wade’s Jewelry and Pawn.

One firearm bought by Walker in Alabama on November 18, 2019, was later used in a homicide in Boston on April 15, 2020. That connection has amplified federal scrutiny, tying Alabama gun dealers directly to violent crime in another state. Additional firearms purchased by Brown were seized during a July 20, 2020 encounter at the E&Z Event Center in Uniontown, Alabama, where both Haley and Collins were present and armed.

Coleman, Brown, and Walker have all pleaded guilty to giving false statements during firearm purchases and are awaiting sentencing — Coleman on March 22, 2022, and Brown and Walker on May 24, 2022. Each faces a maximum of 10 years behind bars. Haley and Collins, still presumed innocent, face up to five years in prison if convicted of conspiracy.

The investigation was led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Birmingham Field Division and supported by ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center. U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and ATF Special Agent in Charge Mickey French confirmed the charges. The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the DOJ’s nationwide initiative to dismantle violent crime networks through coordinated federal, state, and local enforcement.