Two busted for gun crimes

The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) has arrested and charged two men with multiple firearms-related offences in connection to a straw buying operation.

Police were called to a weapons complaint at a retail store in the area of 125 Street and 132 Avenue last February. Police found a man in possession of a handgun with the serial number defaced. Caleb Lauer, 25, was taken into custody and charged with nine offences, including possession of a loaded restricted firearm.

The EPS firearms investigation unit (FIU) used forensic analysis, including an integrated ballistics identification system, to identify the registered owner of the handgun and that it was used in a shooting in the Castledowns area on Dec. 6, 2020. No injuries were reported in that incident.

“The FIU was able to successfully conclude this complex investigation using a wide range of techniques,” said Acting Staff Sgt. Eric Stewart, with FIU.

“The success was due in part to the collaboration between the EPS and RCMP, which identified a straw trafficker and resulted in charges being laid in a previously unsolved Edmonton shooting investigation from 2020.”

The registered owner of the handgun, Brett Shepherd, 28, was arrested on Aug. 25. Shepherd was in possession of a valid firearms license and three other restricted firearms registered to his address. A search of the residence revealed that the three restricted firearms were not present.

The investigation revealed that Shepherd allegedly purchased the four handguns over a two-month period, with the intention of trafficking those firearms to a straw purchaser. The firearms were allegedly trafficked to Lauer between December 2019 and January 2020.

Shepherd was charged with a total of nine criminal offences, including firearms trafficking, possession for the purpose of trafficking, and unauthorized possession.

FIU arrested Lauer in relation to numerous offences, including the December 2020 shooting. Lauer was charged with 11 criminal offences, including discharging a firearm with intent to endanger life, firearms trafficking and possession for the purpose of trafficking.