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Albrightsville man charged with illegally dealing firearms

An Albrightsville man was one of 10 people charged Wednesday morning throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania with illegally selling and possessing 82 firearms in the Camden area over a one-year period.

David Potts, 43, of Camden, and Darnel Johns, 47, of Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, are each charged with one count of conspiring with others to deal firearms without a license.Potts is also charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.From September to December 2014, Potts and Johns allegedly sold 22 firearms, including a sawed-off shotgun, three high-capacity assault-style rifles (one with a 73-round drum magazine and one with five 30-round magazines) and a high-capacity assault-style pistol with a 30-round magazine.Several of the guns were stolen, had obliterated serial numbers or were straw-purchased.The arrests were made by agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), assisted by investigators from local, county, state and federal partner agencies.“The great work of ATF and our other federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, took 82 guns off the streets of Camden. As alleged in the complaints, the defendants were willing to sell these weapons without regard to how they would ultimately be used. This is one part of our multi-facetted strategy to keep the people of Camden safe,” U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman said.Six separate but coordinated ATF investigations involved video and audio-recorded illegal firearms sales by the defendants to a confidential informant and/or an undercover officer.Orlando Matos, 47, of Camden; Robby Velazquez, 24, of Pennsauken, New Jersey; and Orlando Velazquez, 46, of Pennsauken; are each charged with one count of dealing firearms without a license and one count of conspiring with others to deal firearms without a license.Matos is also charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.From March 2014 through February 2015, Matos and Velazquez allegedly sold 30 firearms, including two sawed-off shotguns and a high-capacity assault-style rifle.Several of the firearms were stolen or had obliterated serial numbers.Donavin Jackson, 20, of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and Dominique Lawrence, 27, of Camden, are each charged with one count of dealing firearms without a license.From June 2014 through July 2014, Jackson and Lawrence allegedly sold six firearms, including a high-capacity assault-style rifle and a high-capacity assault-style pistol.One of the guns had an obliterated serial number and was straw-purchased.Jayson Quinones, 21, of Camden, is charged with one count of dealing firearms without a license.From September 2014 through January 2015, Quinones allegedly sold eight firearms, including a .45 caliber pistol and a .357 Magnum revolver.Dante Witcher, 45, of Camden, is charged with one count of dealing firearms without a license, one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of selling a stolen firearm.From September through November 2014, Witcher allegedly sold 15 firearms, all of which were stolen from gun stores in North Carolina.All fifteen firearms were new, high-caliber (9mm, .40, .44) handguns.Elliot Nock, 31, of Camden, is charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.On Oct. 31, 2013, Nock allegedly sold a high-capacity assault-style pistol with a 30-round magazine.Both the charge of conspiring to deal firearms without a license and the related charges of dealing firearms without a license each carry a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.The charges of possessing a firearm while being a convicted felon and selling a stolen firearm each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.“The alleged charges and subsequent arrests announced today send a direct message not to engage in the unlawful trafficking of firearms. Unlicensed dealers of firearms are nothing more than greedy criminal merchants, who seek profits at the expense of public safety, all too often with deadly consequences,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge George Belsky.“ATF will continue to identify, target, and arrest gun thieves, gun traffickers, and straw buyers, who are responsible for starting the sequence of violence in our neighborhoods by peddling guns to criminals. ATF remains dedicated to our core mission of fighting violent crime with our state and local partners to keep our homes, streets, and neighborhoods safe from firearms related violence.”