Manassas Woman Indicted After Allegedly Purchasing More Than 25 Firearms in 15 Day

Pistol Purchased on Nov. 17, 2012, Allegedly Recovered on Nov. 30, 2012 During Arrest of Suspected Narcotics Trafficker

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Kimberly Yvette Dinkins, 44, of Manassas, Va., has been indicted by a federal grand jury accused of purchasing more than 25 firearms to illegally sell to others, along with lying to federal agents about those purchases.

Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and James Newman, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives‘ (ATF) Washington Field Division, made the announcement after the indictment was returned.

"Kimberly Dinkins is accused of purchasing a high volume of handguns in 15 days, at least one of which made it into the hands of a suspected drug trafficker," said U.S. Attorney MacBride. "Illegal gun dealing is a serious crime, and we applaud the ATF for their quick work in putting this case together."

"When offenders indiscriminately put guns on the streets that can be used against our citizens, our children and our community, ATF takes this very seriously," said ATF Acting SAC Newman. "ATF‘s mission and priority is to deny criminals access to firearms and to protect the rights of law abiding citizens."

On Jan. 10, 2013, Dinkins was indicted and charged with dealing firearms without a license and making a materially false statement, which each carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison, if convicted. She was previously charged through a criminal complaint and arrested on Dec. 13, 2012, and she has remained in federal custody since her arrest pending further court action.

According to court records, Dinkins does not have a license to deal in firearms. From Nov. 17, 2012, through Dec. 1, 2012, she attended three Virginia gun shows on three consecutive weekends and allegedly purchased more than 25 semi-automatic handguns from dealers. One of the firearms allegedly purchased by Dinkins at a gun show in Chantilly, Va., the weekend of Nov. 16-18, 2012, was recovered during the arrest of a suspected narcotics trafficker on Nov. 30, 2012 in Prince George's County, Md.

The indictment alleges that during an interview on Dec. 3, 2012, Dinkins falsely stated that she had sold all of the firearms she had purchased at the three gun shows, despite still being in possession of some of the firearms.

This investigation is being conducted by ATF‘s Washington Field Division. Special Assistant United States Attorney L. Rush Atkinson and Virginia Assistant Attorney General and Special Assistant United States Attorney Marc J. Birnbaum are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.