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(CNN) A Frederick County, Maryland sheriff and a local gun dealer have been indicted on federal charges of being involved in a scheme to illegally acquire machine guns to rent them out for profit, federal prosecutors said. announced.
A federal grand jury has indicted Frederick County Sheriffs Charles Austin Jenkins, 66, and Robert Justin Klopp, 36, on charges of conspiring to acquire a machine gun and making false statements, the U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday. said in a news release.
Klopp, who owns a firearms business in the county, has also been charged with illegally possessing seven machine guns, officials said.
According to the indictment, Klopp and his business were authorized to own and trade machine guns under special circumstances, including using the guns as demonstration samples for potential law enforcement buyers. I’m here.
The indictment is From August 2015 to May 2022, Jenkins and Klopp conspired to illegally purchase machine guns by forging documents on Sheriff’s Department letterheads requesting machine gun evaluations and demonstrations. bottom. office.
However, according to the indictment, the two intended to lend the guns to Klopp’s customers in order to benefit Klopp’s business, instead of using the guns for demonstrations.
Klopp drafted documents for Jenkins to sign, then to licensed dealers, importers, manufacturers, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, while the guns were for demonstration to law enforcement. I submitted a fake document stating that. claim.
“The indictment further alleges that Klopp’s business provided political support in recognition of its support for Jenkins’ business,” DOJ said in a release. Jenkins, who has served as sheriff since 2006, will be re-elected in 2022.
CNN reached out to Krop for comment.
Jenkins will remain in his position as sheriff, sheriff’s office spokesperson Todd Wivell said at a press conference Wednesday.
Wivell read a statement on behalf of Jenkins, part of which read: “I have been in constant communication with the DOJ and ATF for over a year and have cooperated 100% in the course of this investigation.”
A court date has not yet been set for the two, and the sheriff’s office has not revealed an attorney for Jenkins.
Frederick County is located about 50 miles west of Baltimore, Maryland.
If convicted, the two face up to five years in federal prison. Klopp also faces up to 10 years in prison for illegal possession of a machine gun.
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