Philip Edward Sarrasin, 26, is accused of running a straw purchasing scheme, where he legally bought multiple handguns which later turned up for sale on the criminal market.
Straw buyers were involved in two recent busts in northern Alberta that took illegal guns off the streets. The man, who was arrested on May 9, bought five handguns between November and December last year and resold them.
Canada used to have a problem with gun owners selling their handguns on the black market. We are talking about Canadians with a valid PAL licence.
They purchased guns. Sold them. Profit. Easy as pie.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/theodore-mantas-firearms-trafficking-1.4357623
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/airdrie-alert-straw-purchasing-firearms-brady-fisher-1.5569889
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/gun-firearm-glock-straw-purchasing-trafficking-weapons-alert-1.4924037
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alert-guns-investigations-weapons-drugs-straw-buyers-1.5145282
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/edmonton-man-gets-8-years-in-prison-for-role-in-weapons-trafficking-scheme-1.4676590
______________
The good news? That problem is now over. It's not happening anymore. The price of handguns on the black market has increased, which is a good sign.
The bad news? Most guns are now only coming from the United States. And the United States doesn't want to address the problem.