Jeremiah Micah Deare, Firearms Trafficking, Louisiana 2023

Lafayette Firearms Store Owner and Wife Found Guilty on Federal Firearms Charges

LAFAYETTE, La.

Two individuals from Broussard, Louisiana, have been found guilty on all counts after a jury trial that began in federal court on Monday, November 27, 2023, and ended Thursday evening, November 30, 2023.

Jeremiah Micah Deare, 37, and Sarah Elaine Fogle, 30, were found guilty of conspiracy to engage in the business of dealing in firearms without a license after the jury heard from over 20 witnesses and numerous trial exhibits demonstrating the illegal sale and attempted illegal sale of hundreds of firearms out of their residence and at gun shows as an unlicensed business.

The couple was found to have engaged in the business of dealing firearms without following applicable laws, including the required background checks on their customers. The 246 firearms seized from the couple’s home, many with price tags, were brought into court for the jury to inspect.

Testimony and evidence revealed that Deare was the owner of Dave’s Gunshop, LLC (Dave’s) and the responsible party for Dave’s Federal Firearms License, which was located in Lafayette, Louisiana. Deare and Fogle did not hold a Federal Firearms License in their individual capacities.

At a warning conference on September 19, 2019, in Baton Rouge, Deare and Fogle were warned for numerous violations, including failing to complete a background check form ATF-4473 (one time), failing to accurately keep acquisition and disposition records for dispositions (67 times), and transferring firearms without having a final response from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (two times).

The jury trial revealed that Deare and Fogle kept firearms at their residence without logging them out of Dave’s store inventory and would travel with the firearms to gun shows conducted at various locations in Louisiana and several other states. Deare and Fogle sold firearms at gun shows to non-Louisiana residents for which no ATF-4473 or background checks were ever completed.

The indictment also seeks forfeiture of a total of 619 firearms which were involved in the commission of these offenses.

The couple faces significant penalties for their crimes, including the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence and fines.

Jeremiah Micah Deare and Sarah Elaine Fogle are expected to be sentenced at a later date.

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