Pottstown man headed to prison for ties to gun trafficking organization

NORRISTOWN — A Pottstown man who prosecutors described as a “dangerous individual” was sent to prison for more than a decade for his role in a multi-county gun trafficking organization during which he relied on straw purchase schemes to illegally obtain four weapons.

Taye Maurice Wynder, 22, of the 500 block of Walnut Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 12 to 24 years in a state correctional facility for participating in the gun trafficking network that operated in Montgomery, Berks, Bucks, Lancaster and Philadelphia counties between June 2019 and February 2021.

Judge Wendy G. Rothstein imposed the sentence after Wynder pleaded guilty to charges of corrupt organizations, dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, illegal sale or transfer of firearms to ineligible person, possession of a prohibited firearm and criminal use of a communication facility.

Assistant District Attorney Samantha Arena sought a lengthy prison term against Wynder.

“He’s a dangerous individual. He’s a person not to possess and he should not have any firearms. We have taken somebody who is incredibly dangerous to the community off the streets,” Arena said.

With the charges, prosecutors alleged Wynder illegally obtained four firearms during his ties to the gun trafficking organization. Wynder was prohibited by law from possessing a weapon due to the fact he was under 21 at the time of some of the incidents and due to a prior criminal history, according to court documents.

When Wynder was arrested, he was found possessing one of the firearms which had an extended magazine, prosecutors alleged.

Defense lawyer Jonathan D. Consadene represented Wynder.

Wynder was one of 14 people charged in February 2021 for roles in the gun trafficking organization. Prosecutors alleged the network illegally obtained and resold a total of 44 firearms using straw purchase schemes in the five-county area, putting guns in the hands of people who are not allowed by law to buy their own guns.

A straw purchase occurs when someone who is legally allowed to purchase a firearm purchases one and then gives it illegally to someone who is not permitted to purchase that firearm.

Authorities previously said only 13 of the 44 guns had been recovered.

Several others previously were sentenced to lengthy prison terms for their roles in the organization.

Daveese Smith, 23, formerly of the 800 block of Smith Street, Norristown, who prosecutors identified as one of the “masterminds” of the organization, was sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison. That sentence was imposed consecutively to the 4-to-8-year prison term Smith was already serving on separate robbery-related charges in connection with brandishing a handgun during a September 2018 armed robbery of a man in Pottstown.  Essentially, Smith is serving a total of 24 to 48 years in prison for all his crimes.

Investigators alleged multiple people purchased firearms on behalf of the gun trafficking organization that was led by several people including Smith and Alexander Aaron Smith, 22, of the 3000 block of Jolly Road, Plymouth Meeting.

Alexander Smith is still awaiting court action on charges for his alleged role in the organization, according to court records.

Quinn O’Donnell Whisted, 24, of the 3000 block of Runnymede Drive, Plymouth Township, previously was sentenced to 11 to 25 years in prison for purchasing 17 guns for the organization.

The organization was dismantled by the Montgomery County Detective Bureau’s Violent Crime Unit.

“It was tremendous work, a terrific investigation, top-notch,” Arena said.

The investigation began in 2020 when detectives with the county’s Violent Crime Unit began tracking the multiple purchases of firearms by some of the conspirators through the state’s Electronic Record of Sale (EROS) system and by reviewing state and federal gun purchase paperwork at gun stores. Detectives also used surveillance, interviews, information from law enforcement agencies, cellphone data and social media analysis to identify the suspects.

“One illegal purchasing spree conducted by members of this organization yielded nine handguns in eight days,” according to a criminal complaint filed by county Detective Jeffrey Koch, Montgomery Township Detective Todd Walter and state police Trooper Brian Kedra. “The purpose of this corrupt organization was to illegally obtain and distribute numerous firearms to others.”

In court documents, detectives said Daveese Smith was identified “as one of the primary members” of the gun trafficking organization and relied on numerous individuals “to illegally purchase firearms and then make those illegally obtained firearms available for resale.”

During the investigation, the Montgomery County Violent Crime Unit was assisted by the Montgomery Township Police Department, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Plymouth Township Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Norristown Police Department, FBI, Bucks and Montgomery County Safe Streets Task Force, the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General’s Gun Violence Task Force, Pottstown Police Department, Hatfield Township Police Department and Berks County Detectives.