United Group Insurance

Union County teen arrested for allegedly attempting to trade a hangun

News

January 16th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

Authorities say a teen who attends East Union High School in Afton was arrested last week after allegedly trying to negotiate trades for a stolen handgun with two Des Moines area teens. Afton Police Chief John Coulter told the Des Moines Register, 15-year old Dyrell Thorton, of Lorimor, was charged with trafficking in stolen weapons, possession of stolen property and a probation violation, after monitoring software on a computer in the Johnston School District picked up the alleged activity.

Investigators determined Thorton had communicated on Facebook with a student at Johnston High School and a student at Lincoln High School about buying and selling stolen guns and swapping ammunition. According to Coulter, Thorton apparently met the student from Lincoln at the Central Iowa Detention Center in Eldora, but it’s unclear how he knew the Johnston student.

No charges were filed against the student from Lincoln, who lives in Des Moines but is on probation in Warren County, and Johnston school officials did not file a report on the incident. According to Coulter, the gun Thorton allegedly tried to deal had been stolen from a house in Creston, but it’s unclear if Thorton had possessed or sold other guns. Police have not been able to locate the gun but were able to determined from the students’ correspondence that Thorton possessed it. Coulter told the Register it’s believed several students in Creston have since possessed the gun. He said the teen was not cooperative, and has mislead officers in a search for the gun.

An investigation into his alleged activities remains ongoing.