Jaansher Gondal, who is 20 years old, and Leslie Harold Taylor, Jr., who is 44 years old, were arrested on Friday, June 24 for their roles in straw purchasing a firearm from a Rutland area firearms dealer, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The two Rutland men appeared in federal court June 27 before U.S Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle and were temporarily detained pending detention hearings later this week.
According to documents in the case, on June 22, Gondal arranged for Taylor to purchase a handgun from a federal firearms dealer. Taylor asserted on an ATF background check form that the Glock handgun was for him when, in fact, it was for Gondal. At the time of the purchase, Gondal was aware he could not legally purchase a handgun because he was under 21 years old and requested Taylor’s assistance in obtaining the handgun in exchange for cash.
If convicted, both men face up to 10 years of imprisonment. Any sentence in the case will be advised by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.