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3 charged with federal firearms violations related to Super Bowl parade shooting

By Mike Heuer
People look at the scene around Union Station after a shooting following the NFL Super Bowl LVIII Victory Parade for the Kansas City Chiefs in downtown Kansas City, Mo., on Feb. 14. File Photo by Dave Kaup/EPA-EFE
People look at the scene around Union Station after a shooting following the NFL Super Bowl LVIII Victory Parade for the Kansas City Chiefs in downtown Kansas City, Mo., on Feb. 14. File Photo by Dave Kaup/EPA-EFE

March 13 (UPI) -- Three men face federal gun trafficking offenses for straw purchases related to the Feb. 14 mass shooting that killed one and injured more than 20 people during the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory rally.

Fedo Antonia Manning, 22, Ronnel Dwayne Williams Jr., 21, and Chaelyn Hendrick Groves, 19, are charged with felonies in federal court, the Kansas City Star and NBC News reported.

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Manning faces 12 counts, while Williams and Groves each face four counts in the federal criminal complaint.

The three defendants are not accused of being involved in the shooting but, instead, are accused of illegally supplying the firearms to at least some of those who were. The court filing indicates a dozen people brandished firearms and at least six of them fired their weapons.

Lisa Lopez-Galvan, 43, a local radio disc jockey, was killed during the shootings for which two suspects are charged with murder and several other felonies.

"Stopping straw buyers and preventing illegal firearms trafficking is our first line of defense against gun violence," U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore, Western District of Missouri, said in an online and video statement.

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Manning allegedly purchased an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 pistol from a firearms dealer in Lee's Summit, Mo. The AM-15 is a shorter version of the AR-15 military-style rifle.

Police recovered the AM-15 from the shooting scene along with two AR-15 rifles and backpacks. The pistol has a 30-round magazine that still had 26 rounds in it.

The federal affidavit says Manning illegally trafficked dozens of those firearms and others. Manning is not a licensed firearms dealer, and law enforcement recovered 15 firearms originally purchased by Williams that wound up in the hands of others, including several who legally couldn't buy or possess firearms.

Moore said law enforcement recovered seven firearms allegedly bought by Manning that were used in various crimes. One was recovered from a stolen vehicle during an armed robbery investigation, while others were recovered during a murder investigation Columbia, Mo., and another during an investigation of an armed robbery of a convenience store.

Law enforcement also recovered three firearms from individuals legally prohibited from owning or possessing firearms. Manning is listed as the buyer of those firearms, Moore said.

Another firearm recovered at the shooting scene is a Stag Arms 300-caliber pistol that Moore said Williams bought during a gun show at the KCI Expo Center on Nov. 25. Moore said Williams bought the firearm for Groves, who was too young to legally buy it.

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The federal complaints against Williams and Groves include one count each for conspiracy to make false statements and one count of aiding and abetting making false statements while acquiring firearms. Each defendant also is charged with making a false statement to a federal agent.

The Super Bowl rally was held in Kansas City's Union Station following the NFL team's 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl.

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