SOUTH BEND — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)), published as received.
SOUTH BEND – Latell Washington, 24 years old, of Elkhart, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Washington was sentenced to 9 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release with the first 9 months being home detention.
According to documents in the case, in June 2021, a handgun was recovered at the scene of a shooting. Law enforcement learned that Washington bought this handgun from a firearms dealer 15 days previously, and that he bought at least 5 other firearms between October 2020 and June 2021. Washington admitted to lying on the ATF form in order to make the firearm purchase and said that he sold at least 4 firearms to people who could not make the firearm purchase themselves.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with the assistance of the South Bend Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Luke N. Reilander and Frank Schaffer.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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