Laurel, IN — Acting U.S. Attorney John E. Childress announced Friday that Dorian LaCourse, 65, of Milford, Ohio, was indicted by a federal grand jury for his role in a scheme to use his position as Chief of Police for the Addyston Police Department in Addyston, Ohio, to help two federally licensed firearms dealers in Laurel Indiana acquire hundreds of machine guns. LaCourse was indicted on charges of conspiracy and making false statements to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).
Childress also announced that the two Indiana gun dealers, Johnathan Marcum, 33, of Laurel, Indiana, and Christopher Petty, 57, of Lawrenceburg, Indiana, have been charged on allegations of conspiracy for their roles in the machine gun scheme.
Childress also announced that the two Indiana gun dealers, Johnathan Marcum, 33, of Laurel, Indiana, and Christopher Petty, 57, of Lawrenceburg, Indiana, have been charged on allegations of conspiracy for their roles in the machine gun scheme.
According to the Indictment, LaCourse and the two Indiana firearms dealers exploited a law enforcement exception to the general federal ban on fully automatic machine guns. The Village of Addyston, Ohio, has approximately 1,000 residents, and the Addyston Police Department has up to 10 officers, most of whom were part-time. However, according to the Indictment, between 2015 and 2019, LaCourse signed multiple letters and other official documents as Chief of Police falsely claiming to the ATF and others that the Addyston Police Department was interested in purchasing or receiving demonstrations of machine guns. In all, the Indictment alleges that through their scheme, LaCourse’s false statements and representations induced the ATF to approve the purchase or importation of approximately 200 fully automatic machine guns.
Instead, these allegedly false statements were a pretense to gain ATF approval for Marcum and Petty to acquire machine guns, which they re-sold to other federally licensed firearms dealers at a profit—of which LaCourse got a portion. According to the Indictment, LaCourse received 11 checks payable to him totaling over $11,500. According to the Indictment, Marcum purchased 18 guns for the purpose of re-selling them—Marcum paid for them, picked them up from the Addyston Police Department when they arrived, and promptly re-sold them at a profit of over $8,000 each.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
