Lilburn Area Man Sentenced on Federal Gun Charges

A Lilburn-area man was sentenced to more than seven years in prison on federal gun charges Tuesday.

Kevin S. Lahey, 27, of Norcross, was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for being in illegal possession of seven firearms and being an unlawful consumer of controlled substances, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. His exact charges are as follows:

• Possessing two firearm silencers which are not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record
• Possessing and receiving seven firearms while being an unlawful user of controlled substances
• Making false statements in connection with the purchase of three firearms

Officials identified Lahey as a suspect in the theft of two silencers from a Lawrenceville gun dealer Feb. 6, 2013 and obtained a warrant for his arrest and to search his Norcross home. There they found a silencer attached to a .22-caliber pistol and later discovered multiple firearms and another silencer in the home’s crawlspace. Officials also found 10,000 rounds of ammunition, military and hunting knives and body armor in addition to marijuana paraphernalia.

Snellville police arrested Lahey three days later after he reportedly attempted to steal a holster, two laser sights and a rifle bi-pod from a local Wal-Mart. Lahey reportedly resisted arrest and dropped a loaded handgun, U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said in a prepared statement.

“The significant sentence imposed by the court serves as a warning that illegal possession of a firearm will be taken seriously by the United States,” Yates said. “Here, federal and local law enforcement agencies were able to work together to avert what could have been a tragedy by identifying and arresting Kevin Lahey before he could use his weapons to harm others in the community.”