Five central Maine men were indicted earlier this month on federal firearms charges.
Four have pleaded not guilty to the charges and are free on unsecured bail pending their next hearing in U.S. District Court in Bangor.
The fifth, Donald “Donny” Henderson, 33, of Winthrop, is set for arraignment May 4. He was issued a summons to appear in court and is represented by attorney James Nixon.
Henderson’s indictment says he made false statements on Feb. 28, 2017, while buying a Smith & Wesson Bodyguard .380-caliber pistol from Audette’s Inc., located in Winthrop. It alleges he checked a box indicating he was not an unlawful user of marijuana when, in fact, he was. The allegation is repeated in the second count, which says Henderson purchased an SCCY model CPX-1, 9 mm pistol on March 2, 2017, also from Audette’s.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives prohibits the sale of firearms and ammunition to those who use marijuana because it remains illegal under federal law even if state laws such as Maine’s permit medical and recreational marijuana.
Richard Quattrone, 48, of Augusta, is charged with two counts of lying to a federal firearms licensee on March 10, 2017. The indictment says he purchased a Smith & Wesson Bodyguard .380-caliber pistol from Audette’s and indicated that he is an not an unlawful user of marijuana or other controlled substances. It says that Quattrone “was an unlawful user of marijuana” at the time and that he intentionally wrote down an address that was not his current one. Quattrone is represented by attorney Christopher McLean.
Quattrone pleaded not guilty to the charges on Thursday and is free on $5,000 unsecured bond.
Convictions on charges of making false statements to firearms dealers carry penalties of up to 10 years in prison.
David O. Miles Jr., 27, of Hartland also allegedly bought two pistols, an SCCY CPX-1 9 mm and an SCCY CPX-2 9 mm, on March 2, 2015, from Bio-Rem Auto Sales, which is in St. Albans, and said the firearms were for him, which was untrue. Miles, who is represented by attorney Matthew Erickson, pleaded not guilty to the charge Thursday morning and is free on $5,000 unsecured bond.
Mark White, 28, of Searsmont was indicted on two counts of lying to federal firearms dealers. He is accused of buying a Smith and Wesson SD40VE .40-caliber pistol on Jan. 31, 2017, from Parsons Small Engine & Gun Shop and indicated he was the actual purchaser when he was not. The second count is similar and involves the purchase of a Glock model 9 mm pistol, again from Parsons.
He pleaded not guilty to both charges on Tuesday and is free on unsecured bond. White is represented by attorney Ronald Bourget.
Steven P. Springer II, 25, of Waterville is accused of two counts of lying to a federal firearms licensee. The first count in the indictment says he purchased a Kel-Tec PF9 9 mm pistol on Feb. 22, 2015, from Bio-Rem Auto Sales, which is in St. Albans, and indicated he was the actual buyer, which was untrue.
The second count says he purchased two Kel-Tec P-11 9 mm pistols on Feb. 24, 2015, from Jon’s Redemption & Pawn Shop, located in Newport. Springer pleaded not guilty to both counts in the indictment and is free on unsecured bail.
Springer is represented by attorney David Bate.
Betty Adams can be contacted at 621-5631 or at:
badams@centralmaine.com
Twitter: betadams
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