The owner of Sportsman’s Supply Company in Summit Township has pleaded guilty to federal firearms charges stemming from an investigation into two guns he sold through an online auction that were used in crimes but couldn’t be traced because he didn’t properly document the transactions.

Grant Williams, 61, of Butler, pleaded guilty Tuesday, Feb. 28, in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh to five charges of failing to record firearm transactions by a federal firearms dealer.

The U.S. Attorney’s office said Williams did not record the sale of five guns between June 2020 and March 2022. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine. He is free on bond. His sentencing hasn’t been scheduled.

As a federal firearm licensee, Williams was required to maintain acquisition and disposition books related to firearms he obtained and sold. When selling a firearm, Williams was required by federal law to record a firearm’s description and the transferee’s name, place of residence and date of birth.

Federal firearm licensees are required to share such records with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to determine the disposition of firearms in the course of a criminal investigation.

In April 2022, the ATF attempted to trace a firearm sold by Williams that had been used in a crime. Because Williams’ acquisition and disposition books did not record the disposition of that firearm, the trace was unresolved, according to acting U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti.

Due to a subsequent unresolved firearm trace, the ATF conducted an audit of Williams’ records between May and August 2022. The audit revealed that 2,636 firearm acquisitions were neither in William’s possession nor recorded in his disposition records, according to Rivetti.

The ATF’s investigation revealed that Williams’ annual firearm sales grew to about 50,000 per year during the COVID-19 pandemic. The investigation further revealed that many of Williams’ firearm sales used the online auction site GunBroker.com.

Following the close of an auction, the firearm would be mailed from Williams’ possession to a different federal firearm licensee to be transferred to the buyer. However, Williams was still required to record the disposition of those firearms, according to Rivetti. During the pandemic, Williams’ business was one of the top five sellers on GunBroker, Rivetti added.