NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Three Fort Campbell soldiers were charged with conspiracy and offenses relating to the illegal purchase and transfer of dozens of firearms to Chicago, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Demarcus Adams, 21, Jarius Brunson, 22, and Brandon Miller, 22, all enlisted members of the U.S. Army and stationed at Fort Campbell, were arrested Tuesday by ATF agents and agents of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee announced on Tuesday.
A criminal complaint obtained Monday charged each defendant with transferring a firearm to an out-of-state resident, making false statements during the purchase of a firearm, engaging in the business without a firearms license, wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit Title 18 offenses.
According to the criminal complaint, the investigation began on March 26 when Chicago police responded to a mass shooting incident. During the incident, multiple people were shot and one person died. During the investigation, multiple firearms were recovered from the shooting scene and five of the firearms were found to have been recently purchased from Federal Firearms Licensed dealers in Clarksville. Adams, Brunson and Miller were identified as the majority purchases of these firearms.
A search of firearm transaction records from FFLs in the Clarksville region determined that since September 2019, the trio had purchased 91 firearms from multiple dealers in Clarksville, Oak Grove, KY, Hopkinsville, KY, Fort Campbell, KY and Paducah, KY. The majority of the firearms were purchased during the last five months. The criminal complaint also alleges that after the firearms were purchased, Miller would provide them to people he knew in Chicago.
On April 28, a federal search warrant was executed at the home of Miller and Adams in Clarksville, where 49 empty firearms cases were recovered. Many of these empty cases were matched to firearms recovered by the Chicago Police Department at the scene of recent shooting and homicides.
The defendants are set to appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge on Tuesday afternoon. If convicted they could face up to 20 years in prison.
