An Arkansas man is scheduled to appear in federal court today in Illinois after authorities accused him of taking hundreds of guns to Chicago and illegally selling them to street gangs over the past five years.
Klint Kelley, 27, of Malvern, was arrested Sunday in Chicago on one count of selling firearms to a convicted felon and three counts of dealing firearms without a license and across state lines. Undercover federal agents arrested Kelley after he sold guns to a criminal informant in Chicago on three occasions beginning in April, according to an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Authorities said six "military-style assault weapons," a 12-gauge shotgun and a semi-automatic handgun were among 21 firearms Kelley sold to the informant at a total price of $14,750. Two of the guns had been reported stolen.
Anthony Riccio, Chicago's police chief for organized crime, said at a news conference Tuesday that investigators believe Kelley was "one of the main sources" of illegal firearms for Chicago's South Side. That part of the city has faced rampant gun violence in recent years, much of it reported to be gang-related.
Police said that Kelley, a former Chicago resident, knew the guns were being used in crimes.
"These [guns] would go to street gangs," Riccio said at the news conference, video of which was posted on the Police Department's Facebook page. "He formerly lived in the Chicago area and he had contacts within the street gangs, and he was providing them hundreds [of guns] before we locked him up."
Kelley has been in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since he was arrested. He has not entered a plea in the case.
Kelley is scheduled to appear in federal court in Chicago for a detention hearing at 1 p.m. today.
Authorities said surveillance footage, recorded phone conversations, text messages and cellular data connect Kelley to the gun sales, according to court filings. Two of the transactions reportedly occurred in suburban areas outside the city. Police said one deal took place in the parking lot of the United Center, the downtown sports arena that's home to the Chicago Bulls.
An affidavit filed by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives contains cellphone images of AK-47 rifles, Uzi submachine guns and other firearms that Kelley reportedly sent to the criminal informant. Special Agent Jessica Salley wrote in the affidavit that the informant had known Kelley for at least 15 years. The affidavit also states that Kelley moved to Arkansas from Chicago about eight years ago after being attacked and beaten by a street gang in the city.
Kelley said in a phone call recorded by federal authorities that he "wanted to get away" from the violence in Chicago and that he enjoyed the "laid back, country style of Arkansas," according to the affidavit. But some of his problems couldn't be escaped.
"I came down here and tried to do it f-----g right," Kelley said in a phone call to the informant. "Then, I come down here, I started smoking weed, I got kicked out of school, did all the same s--t that I was doing up there, but I, this is where I would rather be."
Hot Spring County court records show that Kelley has been convicted of third-degree battery twice and public intoxication. Both offenses are misdemeanors.
Kelley has not been charged with any weapons-related offenses in the county.
Authorities said Kelley purchased firearms online and at gun shows in Arkansas but never completed documentation that might connect him to the weapons. He reportedly arranged to sell the guns in Chicago and drove roughly 700 miles to meet buyers in the city.
Text messages between Kelley and the informant revealed how he obtained the weapons, according to the affidavit.
"There is a gun and knife show coming up next weekend I'm going to try to grab some things there as long as I don't have to put my name on anything I picked up a 9 [mm] last night Smith & Wesson I'm trying to get as many as I can and then I will let you know on some numbers right before I come up there I guess," Kelley texted, according to the court filing.
Kelley also texted the informant: "Been trying to get my hands on some more [AK-47s] but nobody's wanting to let go of them lol."
Kelley faces five years in prison on each count of dealing firearms without a license and across state lines. He faces 10 years in prison on the charge of selling firearms to a convicted felon.
Arkansas State Police said Wednesday that the agency is not involved in the case.
Metro on 09/07/2017