Cleveland Men Jailed for Gun Trafficking Ring

CLEVELAND – Two Cleveland men, Willie Earl Jackson and Shane Plats, were sentenced to prison for their roles in a gun trafficking ring that sold firearms to undercover agents.

According to court documents, Plats, 31, of Ashtabula, sold at least 7 Palmetto Armory Dagger Compact 9mm pistols to Jackson, 26, of Cleveland, after Plats first purchased the pistols from a federal firearms licensee. Plats admitted he did not have a federal firearms license and illegally sold the firearms for profit.

Jackson, a former corrections and detention officer for the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court, sold over 35 firearms to undercover agents between June and August 2023. The firearms included semi-automatic rifles and pistols, including at least one with an obliterated serial number. Jackson conducted most of these transactions in retail establishment parking lots and other public spaces, often from his car.

“The new Bipartisan Safer Communities Act improves our ability to keep illegal firearms out of our neighborhoods and communities,” said United States Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko. “This new tool in our toolkit targets illegal gun sales. It makes crystal clear that anyone who tries to make money by selling firearms or otherwise selling guns regularly must obtain a federal firearms license and run required background checks on those making the purchase.”

Jackson was previously under investigation by the ATF and received a warning letter in 2022 advising him it was unlawful to buy a firearm for someone else, known as “straw purchasing.” Despite the warning, Jackson continued to illegally traffic in firearms.

Plats was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, followed by 2 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment. Jackson received an 84-month prison sentence, followed by 3 years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $200 special assessment.

The cases were brought under the new criminal provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which targets the unlawful trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms. These are the first two cases brought under the Act and sentenced in this district.

The United States Attorney’s Office, the ATF, and other law enforcement partners charged more than 65 individuals as part of a 3-month, violent-crime-reduction initiative in Cleveland last summer. The charges stemmed from extensive efforts to clamp down on illegal firearms trafficking, use, and associated violence in Greater Cleveland.