2 sentenced in Lower Mainland gun purchasing investigation, anti-gang unit says
Two men charged in a 2020 "straw purchaser" investigation have been sentenced, according to B.C.'s anti-gang police unit.
The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of British Columbia says 31-year-old Alex Lytle, of Port Coquitlam, has been sentenced to eight months in jail after pleading guilty to possession of firearms, prohibited devices and ammunition while prohibited.
Pitt Meadows resident Harjot Chahal, 26, was found guilty of transferring firearms without authority and received a conditional sentence of 21 months, according to a news release from the CFSEU-BC.
Both men were arrested in September 2020 as part of a CFSEU-BC investigation into a "straw purchaser" – someone who legally purchases firearms on behalf of someone else who does not possess a firearms licence.
The investigation began in "mid-2020," according to the CFSEU-BC. Investigators learned that two men had made a suspicious purchase at a firearms dealer in the Lower Mainland.
"One of the men, who did not have a valid license to purchase firearms and was prohibited from possessing firearms, appeared to be directing the other male to buy a firearm and ammunition," police said in their release.
"The purchaser had also bought several other firearms in the past year."
Investigators eventually executed a search warrant at a home and a storage locker, seizing "four long guns, various ammunition, high-capacity magazines and police-related equipment," the CFSEU-BC said.
The investigation also led to the seizure of three additional handguns and two long guns.
Chahal initially faced two charges resulting from the investigation, and Lytle faced five.
"Straw purchasing undermines the integrity of the legal sale and possession of firearms, putting them in the hands of individuals who intend to use them for a criminal purpose, jeopardizing the safety of our public," said Insp. Joel Hussey, investigations officer for the CFSEU-BC, in the release.
"The CFSEU-BC Crime Guns Intelligence and Investigations Group (CGIIG) works closely with our policing and government partners to aggressively pursue straw purchasers, holding them and the criminals they are linked to accountable."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'