Hilltown Township Police. Photo by James Short.
The defendant, police allege, had been admitted twice for mental health issues.
A North Wales Borough man has been charged with felony making a materially false written statement in the sale of a firearm and misdemeanor unsworn falsification to authorities stemming from an incident in December 2023 in Hilltown Township.
Police issued a warrant Aug. 27 for Joseph Mengel O’Connell, 23, of the 400 block of South Main Street, to answer for the alleged offenses that occurred at Quinby’s Gun Shop, 511 Route 113, Bucks County, according to charging documents.
O’Connell is free on $10,000 unsecured bail, according to court documents.
On Dec. 27, 2023, O’Connell, police allege, went to the gun shop and attempted to buy a firearm, completed the paperwork required to buy the weapon, but lied on the forms.
Police said the first application that O’Connell completed was a federal ATF form, and he answered “No” to the question, “Have you ever been adjudicated as a mental defective OR have you ever been committed to a mental institution?”
A second form O’Connell allegedly completed was a PA State Police form, in which he answered “No” to the question, “Have you ever been convicted of a crime … or do any of the conditions apply to you?”
Police said O’Connell completed, signed, and dated the form, below an official statement certifying his answers are true, correct, and complete and advising a penalty for making a false oral or written statement.
He submitted the application to gun shop staff, who sent O’Connell’s personal information through the Pennsylvania Instant Check System, police said. The staff member received a “Denied” response back from the system, which was related to O’Connell, police said.
On Aug. 5, 2024, police received a Firearms Investigation Packet from the Pennsylvania State Police Firearms Division regarding O’Connell’s attempted gun purchase, according to the affidavit.
In addition to the firearm record of sale forms, the packet also contained mental health records. Per the affidavit, O’Connell was involuntary committed for mental health reasons on Nov. 9, 2021, and again on July 15, 2022.
On Aug. 9, police met with O’Connell at his home and discussed the investigation, to which he admitted to attempting to buy a firearm at the gun shop, but said he did not fully understand the forms, according to the complaint.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 8 at 2:15 p.m. before Magisterial District Judge Regina Armitage.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
