Norcross man sentenced for guns, meth, booby trap

NORCROSS, GA -- A Norcross man has been sentenced to prison for stealing weapons from the gun shop where he worked, possessing and using meth and setting up a deadly booby trap when federal agents served him a search warrant.

Jeffrey Scott Truitt, 44, of Norcross, was sentenced Tuesday to 8 years, 10 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

Truitt was convicted in August after pleading guilty.

“Truitt not only stole firearms from his employer, but when agents executed a federal search warrant, near the door where they entered was a fully-assembled homemade improvised mine, capable of discharging a 12-gauge shotgun shell at an unsuspecting victim,” U.S. Attorney John Horn said in a news release.

On October 16, 2014, law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant at Truitt’s home.

During the search, agents found a “destructive device” -- the mine-style booby trap -- a suppressor and numerous firearms, including three guns Truitt stole while employed at Mainstreet Guns and Range, in Lilburn.

“An individual who is brazen enough to possess and set a homemade booty trap type weapon poses a clear and present danger to our community,” added ATF Special Agent in Charge Carl Walker in the release. “This sentence sends an unequivocal message that this conduct will not be tolerated.”

They also found about six grams of methamphetamine, according to the news release.

Under federal law, destructive devices and suppressors, also called “silencers,” are required to be placed on the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. Truitt had no items registered on the NFRTR.

The case was investigated by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Special Assistant United States Attorney Erin Sanders prosecuted the case.