MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA —Two adults and 11 juveniles have been charged with three burglaries and one attempted burglary of gun stores in Montgomery and Bucks counties, according to authorities.
In total, 93 firearms were stolen from three gun shops with 33 firearms recovered by law enforcement, leaving 60 firearms on the streets and unaccounted for, officials said.
The gun shops were in Springfield Township in Montgomery County and Warwick and Chalfont in Bucks County. An attempted theft was made at a Hatboro gun shop.
The three burglaries and attempted burglary occurred between Sept. 24, 2022, and Nov. 20, 2022. All were overnight burglaries that occurred between 2 a.m. and 4:30 a.m.
In adult court, two adults and two direct-filed juveniles, all from Philadelphia, were charged: Angel Mason, 40, of Poplar Street, Elijah Terrell, 16, also of Poplar Street, Donte Purnell, 22, of Olympus Place, and Liv Hall, 18, of Parish Street.
Direct file can also be referred to as prosecutorial discretion and allows prosecutors to bring charges against young people in adult criminal court.
Nine juveniles from West Philadelphia, who ranged in age from 14 to 17 years old, were charged in juvenile court. Charges vary by the defendant, but all include felony charges related to operating a corrupt organization, conspiracy, criminal use of a communications facility and firearms trafficking charges.
Authorities said the accused gained access to each gun store, smashed glass display cases, and grabbed numerous firearms before fleeing.
The evidence found that the group also planned and had not yet executed two additional gun store burglaries, officials said.
“These defendants brazenly broke into gun stores and stole nearly 100 firearms, then sold and transferred them widely throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. With 60 firearms unaccounted for, we still don’t know the extent of the damage by this corrupt organization’s criminal activities, including shootings and murders,” Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele said.
The details of each burglary are:
- Sept. 24, 2022 (4:22 a.m.) —Founding Fathers Outfitters, Lafayette Hill section of Springfield Township, Montgomery County: 26 firearms stolen, 6 recovered to date by law enforcement, including one used in a shooting incident in Philadelphia and one found on a suspect involved in a Sept. 29, 2022 homicide in Philadelphia; also of note regarding this burglary, the burglars drove a 2020 Kia Forte that had been stolen in Philadelphia just prior to the burglary.
- Nov. 12, 2022 (4:20 a.m.) —Target Word Gun Shop, in Chalfont, New Britain Township in Bucks County: 32 pistols, 8 rifles, and one suppressor stolen, 10 firearms recovered to date by law enforcement through search warrants.
- Nov. 20, 2022 (2:15 a.m.) —Attempted Burglary of Continental Armory in Hatboro in Montgomery County; burglary was interrupted when an individual heard breaking glass and called 911.
- Nov. 20, 2022 (2:41 a.m.): Tanners Sports Center in Warwick Township in Bucks County; 27 firearms stolen, 16 recovered by law enforcement, including one used in an armed robbery in Pennsauken, N.J. on Dec. 14, 2022; the vehicle fled at speeds over 100 mph.
Through the use of numerous investigative techniques including interviews, physical surveillance, video surveillance, social media analysis, and cellphone data and records, the investigation found that several members of a known, neighborhood-based juvenile street gang in Philadelphia—called “54th Street”—were responsible for the three completed gun store burglaries and one attempted gun store burglary in Montgomery and Bucks counties.
Criminal activity commonly associated with “54th Street” includes carjackings, robberies, burglaries, and gun violence, especially directed at rival groups, according to law enforcement officials.
Detectives found that the 93 stolen firearms were rapidly distributed and illegally transferred between members of the corrupt organization and to others, which led to the use of these stolen guns to commit crimes.
Of the 33 recovered stolen firearms, several have been recovered by law enforcement
during the commission of crimes.
- Sept. 26, 2022 —A Glock 17 firearm stolen two days earlier was recovered by Philadelphia Police in the possession of Ellijah Terrell on the scene of an armed robbery at 5500 Poplar Street in Philadelphia.
- Oct. 5, 2022 —An H & K 9 mm firearm stolen during the Sept. 24, 2022 burglary was recovered by Philadelphia Police when they executed a search warrant related to Sept. 29, 2022 shooting at 54th Street and Willows Avenue where a 16-year-old died of a gunshot wound to the head and a 14-year-old was also shot but survived.
- Dec. 14, 2022 —A firearm stolen from the Tanner Sports Center burglary was recovered by Pennsauken, N.J. Police after it was used by a juvenile in an armed robbery.
A preliminary hearing for defendants Mason, Purnell and Terrell is scheduled for 9 a.m., Feb. 13 before Magisterial District Judge Catherine E. McGill.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Samantha Arena, who is a member of the Firearms Unit.
The joint investigation into these gun store burglaries was led by the Montgomery County Detective Bureau, Bucks County Detective Bureau, the ATF—Philadelphia Field Division, and Springfield Township Police, with participation by Philadelphia Police, Hatboro Police, New Britain Township Police, Warwick Township Police.
The investigation also received assistance from the FBI, the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General and the Delaware State Police.
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