Georgia gun trafficking case linked to crimes in Maryland and D.C.

Three people have been charged in a federal case accusing them of trafficking dozens of firearms purchased in Georgia and sending them to criminals in the Washington, D.C., area, prosecutors said.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia, Mikellen Clements, Kemith Calvin and Laytayah Gross are charged with firearms trafficking and conspiracy to commit firearms trafficking. Clements also faces 42 counts of making false statements during firearms purchases and aiding and abetting the same, prosecutors said.

Authorities allege the group coordinated a scheme between May 2023 and August 2024 to straw purchase firearms from federally licensed gun dealers in north Georgia and transport them to the Maryland and Washington, D.C., area.

Prosecutors say at least 68 firearms were purchased as part of the alleged trafficking operation. Investigators have recovered at least 15 of those guns in the Maryland and D.C. region, including some connected to suspected drug trafficking and drive-by shooting investigations.

U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg said the alleged scheme helped place weapons in the hands of criminals outside Georgia.

"These defendants allegedly coordinated dozens of fraudulent gun purchases in Georgia and directly or indirectly put guns in the hands of out-of-state criminals," Hertzberg said in a statement.

Federal investigators said one weapon tied to the case was recovered in May 2025 from a juvenile at a Maryland high school. The gun, a Micro Draco pistol, was allegedly purchased at Clements' direction and was loaded with 17 rounds when police recovered it.

Two of the defendants have already appeared in court. Laytayah Gross, 27, and Kemith Calvin, 28, pleaded not guilty in federal court earlier this month.

Clements, 27, is currently being held in Washington, D.C., on separate local charges and will be arraigned in federal court at a later date, prosecutors said.

The case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.