The court sentenced an Indiana man to ten years in federal prison for trafficking firearms, including 15 semiautomatic rifles and untraceable “ghost guns,” from Indianapolis to the Chicago region. Devante T. Brown, 29, and co-defendant Corey Sartin, 21, both from Indianapolis, sold these firearms to undercover law enforcement agents on multiple occasions in 2022.
Undercover officers observed Sartin selling a handgun on April 9, four handguns and AR-style rifles on May 31, and additional handguns, rifles, and two “ghost guns” without serial numbers on June 24. Brown’s confidence in the unlawful dealings was clear in text messages, as he stated, “We are going to do good business together.”
Brown pleaded guilty to federal firearms crimes earlier this year, and Judge Franklin U. Valderrama sentenced him this Tuesday. Last year, Judge Franklin U. Valderrama sentenced Sartin to two and a half years in prison for a similar crime. High-ranking officials from various law enforcement agencies, including Christopher Amon of the ATF and Superintendent Larry Snelling of the Chicago Police Department, along with Morris Pasqual, the acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, received praise for their contributions to the investigation and successful arrest of the traffickers.
The conviction is the result of operations by the Chicago Firearms Trafficking Strike Force, a Department of Justice-led project aimed at disrupting the flow of illegal firearms and reducing gun violence. Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a violent crime reduction initiative that prosecutes those who illegally carry firearms, is a component of this larger plan. The strike squad’s analysis reveals patterns and leads that connect crimes to suspects and illegal firearm trafficking routes. The deployment of PSN in this district has resulted in coordinated efforts to combat violent crime, with a focus on deterring firearm violations.
