CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A federal grand jury in Charlotte returned a criminal indictment last
week, charging Joshua Herman Phillips, 39, of Claremont, N.C., with gun trafficking, possession
of a machinegun, and dealing in firearms without a license, announced Dena J. King, U.S.
Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
According to allegations in the indictment, between July and August 2024, in Catawba County,
Phillips engaged in the trafficking of 23 firearms. The firearms included handguns and AR type
rifles. The indictment also alleges that Phillips possessed a Privately Made Firearm, AR Style
Rifle chambered in 7.62 x 39, which is classified as a machinegun.
This case is prosecuted under the new criminal provisions of the Bipartisan Safer
Communities Act, which Congress enacted and the President signed in June 2022. The
Act is the first federal statute specifically designed to target the unlawful trafficking and
straw-purchasing of firearms.
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