Man indicted for ‘straw purchasing’ 27 guns in Indiana for Chicago resident

CHICAGO - A man is facing federal charges for allegedly buying 27 guns in Indiana on behalf of a Chicago resident.

From 2016 to 2019, 27-year-old Ricardo Larrea purchased 26 handguns and one shotgun for the Chicago resident, who identified which firearms he wanted an allegedly paid Larrea to buy them, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday in U.S. District Court.

When Larrea bought the guns, he signed forms indicating that he was buying them for his own use and then gave the guns to the Chicago resident instead, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.

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The indictment charges Larrea with one count of conspiracy to knowingly make false statements in connection with the acquisition of a firearm, prosecutors said.

File: A customer purchases a gun at Freddie Bear Sports on April 8, 2021 in Tinley Park, Illinois. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The conspiracy charge is punishable by up to five years in federal prison, according to prosecutors.

Larrea, of Whiting, Indiana, pleaded not guilty Wednesday during his arraignment and is due back in court Nov. 18 for a status hearing.