Three Raleigh men have been federally charged in connection with the straw purchase of a firearm at a gun show that authorities say was used in a homicide just two weeks later.

Federal prosecutors say Ever Arroyo Gasga, 24, bought two firearms on Jan. 20 at a Raleigh gun show for Anselmo Arroyo Gonzalez, 49 and Jimmy Arroyo Maldonado, 18, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release Wednesday.

Gonzalez and Maldonado — whose relation was not disclosed — are prohibited from owning firearms, the release states. Gonzalez is a Mexican immigrant without authorized legal status who was previously deported in 2016, and Maldonado was previously indicted for felony offenses that include fleeing to elude arrest.

Then on Feb. 5, authorities say a Glock 23, .40 caliber pistol purchased by Gasga landed in the hands of a 14-year-old boy who is accused of fatally shooting Amari Goss, 24.

The teenager, unnamed because he is a juvenile, was charged with murder and J’marree Andrel Smith, 20, was also arrested in connection with the shooting, which happened on Poole Road, according to the Raleigh Police Department.

“Not only are these individuals charged with conspiring to put guns in the hands of people not legally allowed to buy one, but sadly, someone lost their life as a result,” said Robert DeWitt, special agent in charge of the FBI in North Carolina.

The three Raleigh defendants each face charges of aiding and abetting, conspiracy and straw purchasing firearms.

If convicted, Gasga faces up to 15 years in prison.

Gonzalez faces maximum penalties totaling 32 years in prison and deportation, as he faces additional charges of illegal re-entry and possession of a firearm by an alien illegally and unlawfully in the U.S.

Maldonado also faces additional charges of possession of a firearm by a person under felony indictment and possession with the intent to distribute cocaine. If convicted, he faces maximum penalties totaling 40 years in prison.

The crackdown on the straw purchase comes in part from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden in June 2022.

The charges are part of the DOJ’s Violent Crime Action Plan, which involves strategic collaboration between state and local law enforcement to target violent crime.