Authorities say he was snared in a wide-ranging operation led by ATF agents.
CAMDEN -- They came in all makes, models and calibers, prosecutors say -- handguns, shotguns and assault rifles. Many were purchased in Georgia and Pennsylvania before being sold on the streets of South Jersey.
Darnel Johns, 49, admitted Tuesday in Camden federal court to illegally selling at least 22 of the weapons in the fall and winter of 2014, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey.
Johns, of Albrightsville, Pa., was snared in what prosecutors described as a "wide-ranging" series of gun-trafficking arrests made by agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives. Court documents state the agency employed an informant to buy numerous guns from Johns and another man.
Johns pleaded guilty to both conspiring to deal firearms without a license and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The weapons he sold included a sawed-off shotgun, multiple assault rifles and an "assault-stye pistol" with a high-capacity magazine, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors say some of the guns were stolen and had obliterated serial numbers, while others were obtained through so-called "straw purchases" made by third parties from licensed gun dealers, according to court documents.
Johns faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, and up to five years on the conspiracy charge, as well as a fine of up to $250,000 on each count, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Johns' sentencing has been scheduled for Aug. 4.
Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty. Find NJ.com on Facebook.