Xavier Wilson, Illegal Gun Trafficking, Indiana 2023

INDIANAPOLIS – Xavier Wilson, 24, of Otterbein, Indiana, is headed to federal prison for a year and a half after admitting to running a gun-buying scheme that put weapons on the streets and, ultimately, into the hands of a prohibited individual. Wilson was sentenced Friday for making false statements related to the purchase of firearms, a charge stemming from a brazen attempt to profit from illegal gun sales.

According to court documents, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) began investigating Wilson in February 2021, after receiving a tip from the Lafayette Police Department. The tip pointed to Wilson as a potential “straw purchaser” – someone who buys firearms for others who are legally barred from owning them. Wilson allegedly exploited loopholes to acquire 12 firearms from dealers in Marion and Boone Counties within a single month.

The scheme wasn’t subtle. Wilson repeatedly lied on federal forms, claiming he was the actual buyer while knowingly intending to resell the guns. He even provided an outdated address – one where he hadn’t lived for two years – in an attempt to further conceal his illegal activity. The brazenness paid off, temporarily. But the scheme unraveled when one of those guns, a Glock 45 handgun purchased just seven days prior, turned up in Chicago, Illinois, clutched by a convicted felon.

ATF agents confronted Wilson in April 2021 at his actual residence in Lafayette. He confessed to buying the firearms with the sole intention of flipping them for a profit on online platforms like Discord and Armslist.com. He admitted to falsifying the ATF form 4473, the document required for all firearm purchases, and acknowledged his knowledge that he was facilitating illegal gun sales.

“Illegal gun traffickers flood our streets with firearms and drive the violence plaguing too many of our neighborhoods, and saving lives requires us to stop the flow of crime guns at their source,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Zachary A. Myers. “This defendant repeatedly lied to obtain firearms and profited by putting them into the hands of people prohibited from legally purchasing them. Now he will pay for his crimes in federal prison.”

U.S. District Court Judge James P. Hanlon imposed the 18-month sentence and ordered three years of supervised release upon Wilson’s completion of his prison term. The case was investigated by the ATF’s Columbus Field Division and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelsey L. Massa. The conviction serves as a stark reminder that those who profit from fueling gun violence will face federal prosecution and significant prison time.

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