By Steve Neavling
An ATF investigator based in Michigan was convicted in late April of leaking hundreds of internal, sensitive records about the agency’s plans to inspect federal firearms licenses to a person connected to gun rights advocacy groups.
Christodoulos Santafianos, an industry operations investigator, pleaded guilty to releasing internal records and communications about inspections of federal firearm licenses and directives about ghost guns and machine guns, Trace reports.
Santafianos, who leaked the records between 2019 and this year, faces up to a year in prison and $100,000 in fines.
Neither the ATF nor the U.S. Attorney’s Office would comment on the leaked records.
According to the plea agreement, at least one document may have given advance notice to firearms manufacturers and distributors about upcoming inspections.
Details of the leaked of the leaked records were disclosed on YouTube and other sites.
“Inspections are ATF’s tool to ensure that FFLs are following the law, and it’s disheartening to see any rogue elements within the agency give the gun industry the ability to evade the law,” said Joshua Scharff, general counsel and director of programs for the gun violence prevention group, Brady.
As part of his plea agreement, Santafianos resigned from his ATF position.
