Prosecutors: Friend bought shooter armor

DAYTON, Ohio — A longtime friend of the Dayton gunman bought the body armor, a 100-round magazine, and a gun accessory used to kill nine people, but there’s no indication that the man knew that his friend was planning a mass shooting, federal agents said Monday.

Ethan Kollie told investigators just hours after the shooting that he bought the equipment and kept it at his apartment so Connor Betts’ parents would not find it, according to a court document.

The accusations came as prosecutors unsealed charges against Kollie that they said were unrelated to the Aug. 4 shooting in Dayton, Ohio. Betts opened fire in a popular entertainment district, killing his sister and eight others. Officers killed Betts within 30 seconds, just outside a crowded bar, and authorities have said hundreds more people may have died if Betts had gotten inside.

Prosecutors accused Kollie of lying about not using marijuana on federal firearms forms in the purchase of a pistol that was not used in the shooting.

Possessing a firearm as an unlawful user of a controlled substance is a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Making a false statement regarding firearms carries a potential maximum sentence of up to five years’ imprisonment.

Police have said there was nothing in Betts’ background that would have prevented him from buying the AR15 style gun used in the shooting.

The weapon was bought online from a dealer in Texas and shipped to another firearms dealer in the Dayton area, police said on the day of the shooting.

Betts and Kollie apparently had been friends for several years.

Kollie told agents that they had smoked marijuana and used acid several times a week in 2014 through 2015, said U.S. Attorney Benjamin Glassman.