Courts.
Aja Marie Morris illegally took part in straw purchases of more than 40 guns over three years.
A Philadelphia woman has admitted to her role in a gun trafficking ring that operated across multiple Pennsylvania counties.
This organization, which involved Aja Marie Morris, her boyfriend, Kenneth Darien Lyles III, and another individual, Antwion D. Lofton, illegally purchased and transferred more than 40 firearms between 2020 and 2023, according to The Mercury.
Morris pleaded guilty to charges including corrupt organizations, dealing in illegal proceeds, making false statements on federal firearms purchase forms, and conspiracy.
She faces several decades in prison, per reports.
Lyles and Lofton have already been sentenced to significant prison terms for their involvement in the scheme.
Authorities said they used "straw purchase" tactics, where individuals with clean backgrounds purchase firearms on behalf of others who are ineligible to do so, such as convicted felons, domestic violence offenders, and the mentally ill.
The investigation into the gun trafficking ring involved multiple law enforcement agencies and revealed a pattern of rapid firearm purchases, often within a short time frame.
Many of these firearms were subsequently recovered in connection with criminal activities.
Read more on the guilty plea here.
