New Milford Gun Shop Owner Sentenced: Feds

NEW MILFORD, CT — A New Milford man has been sentenced to five years of probation for dealing unregistered guns, according to a statement from federal prosecutors. Jon Benson, 62, will also pay a $5,000 fine.

Benson was the owner of The Freedom Shoppe, a formally federally licensed gun manufacturer and dealer in New Milford.

According to prosecutors, federal Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) investigators began a compliance inspection of The Freedom Shoppe in 2017. Investigators found that Benson and The Freedom Shoppe had manufactured, possessed, and transferred several guns that were not registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record maintained by the ATF.

Benson told investigators that he had not kept a record of manufacture for any guns that had been converted from a pistol or from a frame/receiver, which is required for all licensed manufacturers.

Investigators also found that Benson did not maintain proper records for the firearms he manufactured and those that he sold to customers, with more than a third of the forms appearing blank or with incomplete information.

Benson pleaded guilty in October to one count of failure to maintain firearms records.