Kenneth Locke, Gun Trafficking, New York 2025

A brazen gun trafficking scheme has been brought to a close with the guilty plea of Kenneth Locke, a 23-year-old native of North Carolina currently residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Locke, who entered into an agreement with Rylan Peterson, a Kingston native and former Marine living in North Carolina, to acquire six semi-automatic handguns on behalf of Oryin McLeod and others residing in Kingston, New York, admitted to making false statements to obtain the firearms.

After McLeod paid Locke through Peterson, Locke purchased the firearms from a licensed dealer in North Carolina, falsely representing at the time of the purchase that he was acquiring the firearms for himself.

Peterson later transported the firearms from North Carolina to New York where he provided them to McLeod and others. McLeod was subsequently arrested for unlawful possession of two of the firearms acquired through the straw purchasing scheme.

United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Bryan Miller, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), announced the guilty plea, saying that Locke's actions were a serious threat to public safety.

Locke faces up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of 3 years. Sentencing is scheduled for January 15, 2025, before Senior United States District Judge Lawrence E. Kahn.

McLeod and Peterson previously pleaded guilty to charges related to their unlawful acquisition of the firearms. ATF and the Kingston Police Department are investigating this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin C. Segovia and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon prosecuted the case.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndny/pr/north-carolina-native-pleads-guilty-gun-trafficking-charges