A police investigation into the illegal sale of firearms that were also alleged to have been involved in police investigations in Calgary and Toronto has ended with the arrest of a Calgary man.
The Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team (ALERT) said a man lawfully acquired multiple handguns during a nine-month period beginning in February 2016. He then sold them on the black market, police said.
Known as “firearms straw purchasing,” it typically involves someone without a criminal record and with the proper permits buying firearms for someone “who otherwise could not or does not want their name associated with the transaction,” police said. This practice is illegal in Canada, police said.
Police said three of the weapons purchased by the man were later recovered by Calgary police in two separate investigations in April and December 2017. Toronto police also found one of the guns during a drug investigation in October 2018.
The other firearms bought by the man haven’t been located, police said.
Phillip Edward Sarrasin, 26, of Calgary was arrested on Oct. 24. He has been charged with firearms trafficking, possession of a firearm at an unauthorized place and failing to report a lost firearm, police said.
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