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Edmonton police charge Devon, Alta., woman for allegedly operating as ‘straw buyer’

Firearms recovered by police in Edmonton and Saskatchewan in relation to an Alberta firearms trafficking investigation. Courtesy, EPS

A 23-year-old Devon, Alta., woman has been charged with several firearms-related offences after a firearms trafficking investigation by the Edmonton Police Service.

Police allege the woman obtained a Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL) last summer, and by the fall had purchased numerous restricted firearms.

In December, police in Saskatoon responded to a suspicious death investigation and recovered a firearm with a defaced serial number. The EPS said the gun was traced back to the woman, who had not reported it stolen.

Read more: Gun violence up in Edmonton, expert believes pandemic is contributing

When the analysis of the firearm was complete in April of this year, the EPS was notified of the connection.

The EPS firearms investigation unit then began its own investigation. Shortly after, the EPS said the woman reported to the RCMP that her vehicle was stolen. She claimed her registered firearms, which were both restricted and non-restricted, were in the vehicle along with ammunition when it was allegedly stolen.

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Investigators allege she reported her vehicle stolen to conceal her trafficking activities.

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In July, while conducting an unrelated investigation, the EPS gang suppression team recovered a defaced firearm that police said was once registered to the woman. This furthered police’s suspicions that the woman was operating as a “straw buyer” — someone who uses a legitimate PAL to buy firearms legally and then sell them illegally.

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On Aug. 16, Edmonton police searched the woman’s home in Devon and recovered additional evidence which police said supports that she was trafficking firearms.

Amber Guy has been charged with five counts of firearms trafficking, five counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking and making a false statement.

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