Man waives pretrial hearing right

An Arkansas man arrested in Chicago this month on accusations of illegal gun trafficking waived his right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday.

Klint Kelley, 27, of Malvern, has returned to Arkansas pending further proceedings in the case, according to federal court records. A U.S. magistrate judge last week ordered him to be released from federal custody on the condition that he stay with his sister in a Chicago suburb or with another family member in the Little Rock area.

Other conditions of his release were not made public.

Chicago attorney James Graham, who is representing Kelley in the case, told the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Monday that Kelley’s sister-in-law and brother had driven him back to Arkansas.

Graham has not responded to requests for comment.

The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, along with Chicago police, arrested Kelley in Chicago on Sept. 3 after Kelley illegally sold guns to a criminal informant on three occasions beginning in April, according to a court affidavit.

Kelley reportedly sold 21 guns, including semi-automatic rifles and a shotgun, to the informant at a total cost of $14,750.

He was charged with one count of selling firearms to a convicted felon and three counts of dealing firearms without a license across state lines.

Chicago police said authorities began investigating Kelley after learning that he was “one of the main sources” of illegal firearms on the city’s South Side. The department said Kelley sold hundreds of guns to Chicago street gangs over the past five years.

Kelley, a former Chicago resident, bought firearms at gun shows in Arkansas and drove roughly 700 miles to the city to sell them on the streets, according to the affidavit.

No plea had been entered in the case Wednesday.