Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced that his office charged a Winnebago County man with forgery and falsifying information on a Firearms Owners Identification (FOID) card application submitted to the Illinois State Police (ISP).
The Attorney General’s office charged Jayvian A. Gargani, 22, of Rockford, Illinois, in Winnebago County Circuit Court with two counts of unlawful violation of the Firearms Owners Identification Card Act, Class 2 felonies each punishable by up to seven years in prison; and two counts of forgery, Class 3 felonies each punishable by up to five years in prison. Gargani’s next court appearance is March 21.
“In order to protect Illinois communities from deadly gun violence, those who possess firearms must be in accordance with the law,” Raoul said. “I will continue to work with local law enforcement to prosecute individuals who lie on FOID card applications.”
Raoul’s office alleges that in December 2022 Gargani knowingly entered false information on a FOID application, forged the application and then delivered it to the ISP.
“It is critical to stop prohibited persons from criminally obtaining a firearm,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly. “ISP will continue to work closely with the Illinois Attorney General’s Office to investigate individuals lying to police to get a gun illegally.”
In addition to prosecuting individuals who lie on FOID card applications, the Attorney General’s office works with state law enforcement agencies and prosecutors to increase awareness of Illinois’ red flag law, and to address gaps in Illinois’ firearms licensing system.
The public is reminded the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Assistant Attorney General Steven Knight is prosecuting the case for Raoul’s Statewide Grand Jury Bureau and Assistant Attorney General Peter Ravoori is prosecuting the case for Raoul’s Criminal Enforcement Bureau.
Original source can be found here.