Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division, announced that BRANDI WIGGINS, 35, of Glastonbury, waived her right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Wiggins came to the attention of the ATF after several firearms that she purchased in North Carolina were recovered in Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts. The investigation revealed that, between April 2016 and November 2019, Wiggins purchased seven firearms in North Carolina. She later sold the firearms at pawn shops and also through a website that specializes in firearm sales.
Judge Meyer scheduled sentencing for December 12, at which time Wiggins faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.
Wiggins is released pending sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan Keefe.
This prosecution 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. In May 2021, the Justice 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.
