A Warminster man who stole numerous guns from his dying father and his three co-conspirators all have been jailed after admitting to various roles in a conspiracy to trade the stolen firearms for money and methamphetamine.

Justin Burks, 49, admitted Sept. 4 to stealing 23 guns between April 2017 and April 2018 from his ailing father’s extensive firearms collection and selling a number of the weapons to his co-defendants, a gun shop and others, including people barred from possessing weapons.

He pleaded guilty to counts of dealing in unlawful proceeds, theft, receiving stolen property, conspiracy, possession of methamphetamine and charges related to the illegal transfer of firearms and was sentenced to serve 10 to 20 years in state prison with 20-years concurrent probation.

Investigators found he illegally traded at least 13 guns to his three co-defendants and sold five to a local gun shop.

One gun stolen by Burks later turned up in New Jersey during a separate methamphetamine investigation, and another was found in the possession of a juvenile in Philadelphia. Three guns remained in Burks’ possession for later sale, investigators found.

Burks said he stole and sold the guns both to support his methamphetamine addiction and to satisfy his financial obligations, according to a grand jury presentment filed in the case.

In total, 25 guns were recovered as part of the investigation by Warminster Township Police Detective John Schlotter. At least one gun registered to Burks’ father, James Burks Sr., remains unaccounted for, though the exact number of missing weapons is unknowable, as some of the guns were unregistered.

“Any day now we may turn on the news and find out there’s a dead kid somewhere, shot by one of these guns,” Judge Jeffrey L. Finley said Wednesday at a sentencing hearing for Burks’ co-defendant Lacey Jill Williams.

burks_gun_case_poster-1.jpg

Williams, 31, of Green Lane, was sentenced Wednesday to 11 to 22 years in state prison and five-years concurrent probation. She pleaded guilty in June to counts stemming from the purchase of seven of the stolen guns, as well as charges related to the sale of methamphetamine. At least eight guns were ultimately recovered in Williams’ possession.

Though considered the second most culpable defendant in the gun case, Williams lengthy sentence was fashioned to encompass additional crimes, Judge Finley said, including her participation in a 2016 break-in, as well as her responsibility in the death of her newborn child last year at a hotel in Milford Township.

“I don’t think I have words to adequately express the feeling that this case brings to me,” Finley told Williams. He also noted his difficulty in weighing her eventual cooperation in the gun case against her egregious conduct.

Williams admitted Wednesday to charges of criminal trespass and endangering the welfare of children in her other cases.

Joseph Jackson, 55, of Telford, entered no contest and negotiated guilty pleas in June to charges related to the purchase of two guns from Burks, the sale of drugs and the illegal possession of a gun. He has been sentenced to three to six years behind bars.

One of the guns traded to Jackson was recovered by police in his possession while the other was found in a car associated with Williams.

Both Williams and Jackson traded methamphetamine and money to Burks in exchange for the guns on multiple separate occasions.

Another man, 60-year-old Willow Grove resident Joseph O’Donnell, also entered a negotiated guilty plea in June, admitting to misdemeanor charges related to the illegal transfer of firearms. O’Donnell admitted purchasing four guns from Burks in exchange for money and a generator, and was sentenced to 11½ to 23 months in county jail.

Police located four guns in his possession during the investigation. Williams, Jackson and O’Donnell all were prohibited by law from possessing guns.

"Illegal firearms in the hands of individuals who are legally precluded from possessing them, particularly those involved in the distribution of illegal drugs, present a clear danger to the citizens of Bucks County.  This case demonstrates how quickly illegal firearms can spread once they are in the wrong hands," said Deputy District Attorney Thomas C. Gannon.  "Bucks County and our neighboring communities are now safer due to the exceptional work of Warminster Township Detective John Schlotter and the various police agencies who assisted him in recovering such a vast number of illicitly traded firearms."

Investigation of the gun-trafficking conspiracy by Warminster Township Police grew out of a tip from the Office of Attorney General after one of the stolen guns was found in the possession of a 17-year-old in Philadelphia and traced back to the Burks household.

Deputy District Attorney Thomas C. Gannon prosecuted the case.

Williams’ additional cases were investigated by Springfield Township Police and Pennsylvania State Police. Deputy District Attorney Chelsey Jackman prosecuted the PSP case out of Milford Township.

Contact: Thomas C. Gannon, 215.348.6461, tcgannon@buckscounty.org