ST. PAUL, Minn. (KFGO) – Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison says internal documents show that Wisconsin-based Fleet Farm ignored employee warnings about gun sales to a straw buyer.
In a lawsuit that was resolved earlier this year, Ellison’s office claimed Fleet Farm negligently sold firearms to straw buyers in 2021. Fleet farm agreed to pay a $1 million fine and take extra steps to stop straw buyers in Minnesota stores.
Ellison revealed the documents Wednesday afternoon. The documents say Fleet Farm corporate ignored a warning from a store manager in Blaine, Minnesota that raised concerns about a potential straw buyer. Ellison says fleet farm sold the straw buyer 11 more guns after the store manager raised concerns. The ATF eventually informed Fleet Farm to stop selling guns to the straw buyer.
Fleet Farm later reportedly went on to use the gun sales in ‘suspicious activity’ training, during the training session, a Fleet Farm corporate employee called it “Obvious” what was happening during the sales despite the sales being reportedly ignored by corporate at the time.
“We won disclosure of these documents because Minnesotans deserve to see what corporations do when they think we’re not looking. These documents, available to the world as of today, show that Fleet Farm ignored clear internal warnings in their sales to straw buyers.” Ellison said.
Ellison claims getting the documents was a difficult task.
“These documents did not come easily, during litigation Fleet Farm fought tooth and nail to keep us from seeing them, but we moved the court to compel Fleet Farm to release them to us and we won,” Ellison said.
Ellison’s office says Fleet Farm sold 37 guns to two different straw buyers in Minnesota, only 18 of the guns have been recovered. One of the guns sold by Fleet Farm was used in a 2021 St. Paul mass shooting that injured 14 and killed one.
A letter from 2021 released today by the MN Attorney General’s Office from a store employee to Fleet Farm corporate regarding the sale of guns to a potential straw buyer
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