BOSTON - Two Gardner men were arrested today and charged in federal court in Worcester with firearms offenses.
Travis Miller, 29, and Edwin Labaw, 33, were each charged with one count of being a felon in possession of firearms. Miller and Labaw appeared before Magistrate Judge David H. Hennessy this afternoon.
According to the charging document, Miller had indicated to a government cooperating source that he had access to, and could sell, firearms, silencers and pipe bombs. In September 2017, Miller sent Facebook messages to the cooperating source regarding the potential sale of a double-barrel 12-gauge shotgun and a 9mm rifle, as well as ammunition for the shotgun. On Sept. 19, 2017, Miller and Labaw met with the cooperating source and an undercover agent in Gardner and sold them a double-barrel 12-gauge shotgun, a 9mm Kel-Tech Sub 2000 rifle, and 11 rounds of 12-gauge shotgun ammunition for $1,200.
It is further alleged that Miller subsequently communicated with the cooperating source on Facebook regarding the potential sale of an AK-47 style rifle. On Sept. 27, 2017, the cooperating source and an undercover agent met Miller, Labaw, and a third individual in Fitchburg to purchase a 7.62x39mm caliber SKS rifle, along with ammunition and magazines, for $1,800.
According to court documents, both Miller and Labaw each have prior felony convictions and are therefore prohibited from possessing firearms.
Each defendant faces a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. This case was investigated with assistance from the Massachusetts State Police and the Worcester, Gardner, and Fitchburg Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Abely of Weinreb’s Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
