Allegheny Township man with record tried to buy gun at North Hills shop, police say
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An arrest warrant has been issued for an Allegheny Township man accused of illegally trying to buy a gun at a shop in the North Hills.
Teige Fredrick Townsend, 24, of the 1900 block of Route 356 was charged by Northern Regional Police with a felony count of illegal sale or transfer of a firearm along with a count of making false statements to authorities.
Townsend was released on a nonmonetary bond following his April 10 arrest on the charges, according to court documents.
The arrest warrant was issued after he failed to appear for a preliminary hearing May 3 before District Judge William Wagner, according to court staff.
A Northern Regional Police officer wrote in a criminal complaint that the department was notified by the state police firearms division that Townsend tried to buy a Glock 9 mm pistol at the Big Buck Sport Shop in Marshall Township on Sept. 23, 2021.
Investigators said a criminal investigation was launched after Townsend failed to acknowledge on the form information that would prohibit him from buying the gun.
A background check found that Townsend was arrested in 2018 and 2021 and was prohibited from having a gun in his possession, the complaint said.
Townsend also failed to note that he had a mental health commitment in 2021 that would make him ineligible for gun ownership, police said.
When police contacted Townsend, he refused to talk and told the officer: “Go (expletive) yourself. I hate cops,” according to his arrest papers.
Court records show that Westmoreland County Park Police charged Townsend with a felony count of criminal mischief on Dec. 12, 2018, for an incident in Allegheny Township.
Townsend waived his right to a preliminary hearing on the charge Feb. 5, 2019, and was ordered to stand trial by a district judge, the docket shows.
Court records show Townsend was sentenced to a three-year Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program.
In June 2022, Allegheny Township police charged Townsend with a misdemeanor count of making repairs to or selling offensive weapons, according to court records.
He pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced to a year of probation, court records show.