Charges have now been filed in connection with a series of gun thefts, the majority of which happened in the Pittsburgh area.
Channel 11 has been following the crime spree for more than a year, and eight teenagers were arrested this week.
According to Allegheny County Police, in January 2025, a group of teenagers raided four separate gun stores in Pennsylvania and Ohio, getting away with 79 guns.
“We don’t want any illegal guns on the streets, let alone in the hands of teenagers,” said Christopher Kearns, Allegheny County Police superintendent.
During a joint press conference with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and ATF agents, police stated that the burglaries and attempted break-ins occurred at several stores, including Greater Pittsburgh Quick Cash in Duquesne, Legion Arms in West Mifflin, and Allegheny Arms and Gun Works in Bethel Park. Police said the same group took firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee in Ohio.
“This isn’t just a haphazard incident, that these are planned, considered, and coordinated efforts,” said Christopher Decker, Deputy Attorney General.
“We have charged these individuals as part of a corrupt organization that knowingly and intentionally targeted these businesses, and as a result, some of the individuals are now facing well over 200 counts of various charges,” said Todd Dolfi, Allegheny County Police Inspector.
In connection with the year-long probe, police claimed to have filed 1,400 charges. While 55 of the stolen guns were recovered, the others were not and are linked to a number of recent violent crimes and incidents.
“Some of those crimes include a young man who was shot and injured on the South Side section of the City of Pittsburgh, back in May. There was a shooting – multiple rounds fired into a house full of people in McKees Rocks in March,” said Victor Joseph, Allegheny County Police assistant superintendent. “Most tragically, the shooting death of 7-year-old Kruz Bailey-Baker, a first grader at Manchester PreK-8.”
While seven of the teenagers were aged 14 to 17, Chalais Ramey, 19, has been charged as an adult. He has a lengthy criminal history, including robbery and carjacking charges from 2022, more gun charges from last year, and a run-in with police when he was just six years old.
In 2013, Channel 11 stated that Ramey grabbed an officer’s gun and attempted to pull it from his holster after reportedly attempting to steal a bike.
On Wednesday, authorities conducted a search warrant at Ramey’s home, discovering a gun and ammo. He is in the Allegheny County Jail.