Feds detain 2 at Beaufort post office, alleging illegal international weapon shipment
Two people were arrested at a Beaufort post office Thursday in a federal operation targeting the illegal mailing of weapons, officials say.
A man and woman were detained and arrested outside the post office at 11 Robert Smalls Parkway after allegedly receiving illegal firearms or firearm parts through the U.S. Postal Service, Breslin Steverson of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said in an email.
It was a joint operation between the USPIS, Homeland Security Investigations and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Steverson said. He added that HSI was involved due to the suspect package “originating in another country.”
Photos from WSAV-TV show one man handcuffed outside the post office, flanked by a HSI agent and a Beaufort County deputy. Several other federal agents stood nearby.
The two detainees were being held in local custody, Steverson said Friday morning, although he did not provide their names. He said they could be federally charged under the National Firearms Act and Gun Control Act, laws that heavily regulate the mailing of weapons across state and country lines.
Sheriff’s office spokesman Lt. Daniel Allen confirmed 18-year-old Burton resident Brandon Treymayne Anderson faces a county charge in connection with the post office operation. Anderson was booked into the Beaufort jail Thursday evening on a charge of unlawful possession of a machine gun, military firearm or a sawed-off shotgun or rifle, which is a felony.
Allen deferred questions about any other charges to the federal officials leading the investigation, saying the sheriff’s office took part in the operation as an “assisting agency.”
Asked how the firearms or firearm parts were discovered prior to Thursday’s arrests, Steverson said postal inspectors use “profiles” to identify packages that may have illegal contents.
“It is to be noted that a postal inspector cannot open any parcel without consent from the shipper or a receiver or search warrant issued by a federal judge,” he added.
Any other information on the case is being withheld “to protect the integrity of the investigation,” Steverson said on Friday.
