Cherry Hill man admits illegally selling 100 handguns
Fr'Neil Hickson, 38, admitted that from 2009 to 2013 he sold or brokered the sale of the handguns he obtained form outside New Jersey.
A Cherry Hill man pleaded guilty Tuesday in Camden federal court with conspiring to illegally sell at least 100 handguns to drug dealers and others, prosecutors said.
Fr'Neil "Philly" Hickson, 38, admitted that from 2009 to 2013 he sold or brokered the sale of the handguns he obtained form outside New Jersey. Many of the firearms came through Joshua Jackson, of Willingboro, who purchased most of them at gun shows from unlicensed sellers who did not perform background checks, prosecutors said. Some of the guns were obtained through straw purchasers at Ohio gun stores.
Jackson, also known as "Apple" and "Trent," resold the guns to Hickson and Terrance Laboo, a Camden drug dealer. Hickson and Laboo then arranged for the sale of firearms to other drug dealers and felons in the Camden area.
Hickson faces a maximum five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. His sentencing is set for Oct.1. He has been in federal custody since his April 29, 2014, arrest in Atlanta for illegal possession of 12 firearms. He pleaded guilty in that case and was sentenced to four years in prison. He completed that sentence last August but has remained in custody for the Camden case.
Jackson is serving a six-year sentence in connection with the Camden conspiracy. Laboo also was sentenced to six years in prison in the conspiracy case, which involved the total illegal sales of approximately 300 guns.
The investigation was dubbed "Operation Buckeye" because the guns recovered from felons in Camden, Philadelphia, and other surrounding communities came from Ohio.