The owners of a Lafayette gun shop have been sentenced to federal prison after they were convicted by a jury of violating federal gun laws.
Jeremiah Micah Deare, 40, was sentenced to 97 months, or eight years and one month, in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
Sarah Elaine Fogle, 33, was sentenced to 60 months, or five years, in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
Deare and Fogle were convicted by a federal jury back in November on charges of conspiring to deal firearms without a license, making false statements in records required to be kept by a licensed firearms dealer, and failing to run required background checks in connection with their unlicensed firearm business located in
Lafayette.
Dave's Gunshop, LLC, a business owned by Deare, also was named in the September 2021 indictment that led to the trial, conviction and sentencing. It is the subject of a forfeiture proceeding that prosecutors that began after the trial was over.
Evidence at the trial showed that Deare was the owner of Dave’s Gunshop, LLC (Dave’s) and the responsible party for Dave’s Federal Firearms License, which was located in Lafayette, Louisiana. Deare and Fogle did not hold a Federal Firearms License in their individual capacities.
Witnesses testified that Deare and Fogle engaged in the illegal sale and attempted illegal sale of hundreds of firearms out of their residence and at gun shows as an unlicensed business. The couple was found to have engaged in the business of dealing firearms without following applicable laws, including the required background checks on their customers. There were 246 firearms seized from the couple’s home, many with price tags, and the indictment also seeks forfeiture of a total of 619 firearms which were involved in the commission of these offenses.
In 2019, a compliance inspection was conducted at Dave’s by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). At a warning conference on September 19, 2019, in Baton Rouge, Deare and Fogle were warned for numerous violations, including failing to complete a background check form ATF-4473 (one time), failing to accurately keep acquisition and disposition records for dispositions (67 times), failing to accurately keep acquisition and disposition records for acquisitions (62 times), transferring firearms without having a final response from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (two times), inaccurate completion of ATF-4473 forms (111 times), and for missing firearms.
ATF investigators provided Deare with information about his responsibilities as a license holder, and about the laws he's supposed to follow when he sold guns at gun shows. Deare signed a form saying he understood all those things, and that he understood it was his responsibility to make sure he was following the rules.
But, agents allege, even after being warned, the pair violated the rules anyway, and didn't comply with the recordkeeping and background check requirements.
"Both defendants acquired large quantities of firearms and ammunition from estate sales and other means but would not document the firearms in Dave’s Acquisition & Disposition Book as required by federal law. In addition, firearms brought to Dave’s to be sold on consignment were not logged into Dave’s Acquisition & Disposition Book and were not placed for sale at Dave’s, but rather were taken to various gun shows and sold without background checks in an unlicensed business," a release from the US Attorney's Office states. "Their failure to conduct background checks resulted in the sales of firearms to persons prohibited by law from possessing or purchasing firearms. Additionally, the sales of firearms at gun shows outside the State of Louisiana were not done through a dealer licensed in the state where the gun show was conducted as required by law."
Prosecutors said that the ATF tried to help the pair operate their business as the law required.
“The regulation of firearm production and sales is a necessary function of the ATF,” said U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown. “The ATF took the opportunity to counsel the defendants as to their wrongdoing, but the defendants nevertheless ignored ATF, deciding to proceed with their criminal conduct and the court has now held them accountable. We hope these sentences serve as a deterrent to anyone who considers engaging in such illicit activity going forward.”
The ATF conducted the investigation and Assistant United States Attorneys Lauren L. Gardner and Myers P. Namie prosecuted the case.
“These two defendants are part of fueling the violent crime problem across the country by selling to prohibited persons,” said ATF New Orleans Special Agent in Charge Joshua Jackson. “They have shown a reckless disregard for the federal laws and responsibilities associated with the privilege of possessing a federal firearms license. The sentence imposed sends a message to the community that dishonorable individuals like this will be held accountable as we work to keep our neighborhoods safe as a top priority for ATF.”
