Philadelphia man 'armed communities' through illegal firearm purchases, DA says
PHILADELPHIA - Prosecutors say a Philadelphia man will spend three decades behind bars for the illegal straw purchase of nearly two dozen firearms, most of which are still missing.
Leonard Truesdale, 25, was arrested in June 2021 and nearly two years he later pleaded guilty to 21 counts of making false statements on firearm purchase forms.
Authorities began to investigate Truesdale after a 19-year-old man was found with a loaded 9-mm pistol during a Feb. 2021 traffic stop in Philadelphia.
The gun, according to authorities, had never been reported stolen and a records check later showed that Truesdale purchased it from a Bucks County gun shop in 2020.
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Investigators found that Truesdale bought 21 handguns between July 2020 and Mar. 2021 from four gun shops in Bucks County and one in Philadelphia.
When Truesdale and another man returned to one of the gun shops to purchase two more guns in March 2021, investigators say his background check was delayed.
The unnamed man who was with Truesdale was able to purchase a .45-caliber pistol that day. Truesdale returned two days later and bought a gun and box of ammo.
Prosecutors say Truesdale was found with the .45-caliber pistol purchased by the other man when he was arrested in Philadelphia on March 13, 2021.
Since Truesdale's arrest, authorities have recovered just eight of the 21 firearms he illegally purchased. They were found in Philadelphia, Bucks County, and Delaware.
"Mr. Truesdale armed communities," Deputy District Attorney Thomas C. Gannon said. "The armaments he purchased are still putting communities at risk today."
Prosecutors say he refused to say who he sold the guns to when given a chance to tell Common Pleas Judge Charissa J. Liller, saying only "I can't answer that."
"You are supplying guns to the same people who are killing people in the community," Liller said in court Thursday.
In addition to the 15-30 year prison sentence, Liller ruled that Truesdale is unable to possess any firearms upon his release and must hold a full-time job.
Truesdale was also ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation while incarcerated.