Crime & Safety

Former East Windsor Gun Store Employee Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge

Krystopher DiBella, 25, agrees to a sentence of three years of probation.

A former employee of Riverview Gun Sales in East Windsor has pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting the failure to make a proper entry on a form that must be completed by individuals who purchase firearms from federally licensed dealers, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Krystopher DiBella, 25, of West Suffield, pleaded guilty on Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons in U.S. District Court in Bridgeport.

The press release states the following:

According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately 2008 to August 2012, DiBella was employed at Riverview Gun Sales, which used to be a federally-licensed firearms dealer in East Windsor.  

On several occasions during his employment at Riverview Gun Sales, DiBella transferred firearms to individuals who failed to respond to certain questions on the ATF Form 4473.

The charge against DiBella stems from a sale that occurred on March 15, 2010.  On that date, DiBella failed to have a purchaser of a firearm, who was a non-immigrant alien, answer a question on the form regarding United States citizenship.  

Judge Fitzsimmons has scheduled sentencing for September 16, 2013, at which time DiBella faces a maximum penalty of one year of imprisonment, five years of probation and a $100,000 fine.  

The parties have agreed to recommend a sentence of three years of probation.  As part of this agreement, DiBella will not apply for a Federal Firearms License (FFL) or to be a responsible party for an FFL for the entire probationary term.

This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert M. Spector.

Riverview Gun Sales has been at the center of several recent, highly controversial incidents over the past several years. In April, the store lost its license to sell guns after several months of investigation by the ATF.
The store had sold a gun to Nancy Lanza, the mother of Adam Lanza, the 20-year-old who police said is responsible for the Dec. 14 shooting at Sandy Hook School. Adam Lanza killed his mother in their Sandy Hook home before he shot his way into the school and killed 20 students and six adults, state police said.

The gun shop also has had a history of issues, particularly with being unable to track its inventory.

On Dec. 15, a South Windsor man was arrested after he attempted to steal a long rifle from Riverview Sales.

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Jordan Marsh, 26, was charged with third-degree larceny, first-degree robbery, theft of a firearm and carrying of dangerous weapons. He was arraigned in Enfield on Monday and held on $2 million bail.

Further investigation revealed that Marsh had an AR-15 assault rifle stashed at a Hartford hotel where he had been staying, police said.

According to East Windsor Det. Matthew Carl, the AR-15 had been stolen from Riverview Sales, whose employees were unaware that the weapon was missing.

It was not the first time that Marsh had taken guns from Riverview Sales.

Marsh, who, according to relatives, is mentally ill, had previously received a two-year suspended sentence after it was discovered in June 2011 that he had stolen 12 firearms from Riverview Sales.

Store employees were not aware that Marsh had taken 12 guns from the store in the first incident until they were alerted in June 2011.

Marsh isn’t the only person who has stolen a large number of guns from Riverview Sales, according to police.

In 2007, Riverview Sales owner David E. LaGuercia notified the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives that 33 guns were missing from his store, according to the Hartford Courant. Of those 33 guns, 28 were recovered when police searched the home of Brian H. McClelland, who was a frequent customer of the store and helped out on occasion, The Courant reported.

Correction: The original story listed DiBella as a current employee.

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