The Department of Justice charged a Virginia man Friday for allegedly selling a stolen firearm to the ISIS-inspired Old Dominion University shooter after authorities previously caught him illegally purchasing firearms during the Biden administration but declined to prosecute.
Authorities say 36-year-old Mohamed Jalloh walked into a classroom at the Virginia campus, asked if it was an ROTC class, and then began shooting, killing an instructor and injuring two students. Federal prosecutors charged 32-year-old Kenya Chapman with dealing in firearms without a license in connection with the March 12 shooting and with three counts of making false statements during firearm purchases, according to a Justice Department press release.
Federal investigators previously caught Chapman straw purchasing firearms during the Biden administration. In 2021, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Newport News Police Department investigated Chapman after three guns he purchased were quickly recovered from crime scenes, including two tied to a homicide and another from a drunk-in-public incident. However, authorities issued him only a warning letter after he admitted to the purchases.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi criticized the prior handling of the case involving Jalloh.
“The Biden Department of Justice declined to prosecute this man and let him off easy with a warning,” Bondi said. “Left-wing soft-on-crime policies cost lives — but this Department of Justice doesn’t tolerate crime, we punish it.”
Court documents state that Jalloh had been legally barred from possessing a firearm because of a prior felony conviction tied to an attempt to assist the Islamic State terrorist organization. Investigators say Chapman admitted during an interview with federal agents that he stole the gun from a vehicle in Newport News, Va., roughly a year before the attack and later sold it to Jalloh.
Investigators linked Chapman to the gun through phone records showing multiple calls between the two men in the days leading up to the shooting, according to the affidavit. Chapman said he met Jalloh through work and that Jalloh told him he needed the weapon for protection while working as a delivery driver. Chapman acknowledged knowing Jalloh had spent time in prison but denied knowing about his felony conviction.
FBI Director Kash Patel warned that individuals who illegally traffic firearms face federal prosecution.
“If you steal firearms, lie on federal forms, and put weapons in the hands of convicted terrorists, this FBI will find you,” Patel said. “I want to thank our Norfolk Field Office and partners who continue to work 24/7 to bring to justice those responsible for yesterday’s attack. In the meantime, we continue to keep the victims, their families, and the entire Old Dominion community in our prayers.”
Authorities say Chapman told investigators he had no knowledge that Jalloh planned to carry out a mass shooting. A law enforcement official told The Associated Press earlier Friday that the weapon used in the attack had an obliterated serial number, a detail that could complicate efforts to trace its origin. Investigators will attempt to restore the number to determine the firearm’s chain of custody.
Jalloh pleaded guilty in 2016 to attempting to assist ISIS and received an 11-year prison sentence. Federal records show he was released in December 2024 and placed on supervised release. A person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press that Jalloh secured an early release after completing a drug treatment program, though it remains unclear how he qualified because inmates convicted of terrorism-related offenses typically do not receive such sentence reductions.
A heroic ROTC cadet fatally stabbed Jalloh during the attack, stopping the shooting and preventing further casualties. Investigators say the cadet rushed the gunman and ended the rampage before it could escalate further.
The DOJ did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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