Detectives with the Berks County District Attorney’s Gun Violence Reduction Task Force have charged two Reading men in an firearms‑trafficking scheme that investigators say began when with the recovery of a handgun with a scratched-off serial number in the Leesport area.
Joel Morales‑Colon, 29, and Joymar Ortiz‑Lugo, 39, both of the 100 block of South Sixth Street, are accused of working together to illegally obtain firearms.
According to investigators:
The case traces back to January, when Ontelaunee Township-based Northern Berks Regional police recovered a 9 mm Ruger handgun with its serial number removed. Forensic technicians restored the number in March, identifying the gun as registered to Morales‑Colon’s fiancée.
When questioned, Morales‑Colon told detectives the Ruger — along with several other firearms — had been stolen from his Sinking Spring storage unit. He filed a burglary report on March 19. Investigators later determined the report was false.
Detectives uncovered evidence that Morales‑Colon had been illegally buying guns for others, including Ortiz‑Lugo, who is prohibited from purchasing firearms. That process is commonly referred to as straw purchases.
On May 13, Morales‑Colon bought a handgun from a federally licenses firearms dealer in Robeson Township on Ortiz‑Lugo’s behalf in exchange for cash. Ortiz‑Lugo sought the weapon for protection, they said, after being involved in a shooting days earlier in Reading.
Detectives seized that handgun on May 21 during the search of their residences.
Ortiz‑Lugo was arrested Wednesday in his residence. He was arraigned before District Judge Kyley Scott and committed to Berks County Jail in lieu of $75,000 bail.
Morales‑Colon surrendered to detectives Thursday morning at the Berks County Services Center and was being held in the central processing center awaiting arraignment.
Both men face charges of providing a materially false written statement for the sale/transfer of firearms and related felony counts.
In the release, District Attorney John T. Adams said the gun violence task force will continue to investigate how guns recovered by police — at crime scenes or in the course of making an arrest — ended up in the hands of those who shouldn’t have them.
This, he said in a release, will curtail the illicit transfer of firearms by signaling that law enforcement will aggressively pursue those involved in straw purchases.
“Straw purchasing remains a significant driver of violence in our communities,” the district attorney said. “These recent arrests highlight the continued, relentless efforts of the Berks County Gun Violence Reduction Task Force to dismantle the illegal firearm supply chain. We will not tolerate individuals who exploit the legal system to put guns into prohibited hands.”