A South Side woman who allegedly bought guns for her boyfriend while he was on home electronic monitoring (EM) for a Class X gun case was charged with gunrunning Tuesday and the boyfriend has been slapped with another Class X felony, too.
Prosecutors said Travon Anderson, 27, allegedly told officers he “just likes guns” when they found them in a storage locker and the broiler of his kitchen stove during an electronic monitoring “compliance check” on April 26. Sheriff’s police went to the home Anderson shared with Jessica Patterson, 31, a child, and another adult to ensure the residence was in line with EM regulations, according to statements made by attorneys during his bail hearing.
Anderson, a twice-convicted armed robber, was on EM for a pending armed habitual criminal charge after police allegedly found a gun in his waistband during a traffic stop in July 2020.
During the search, police allegedly discovered a loaded handgun in the kitchen broiler and another gun, ammunition, and magazines in a storage locker.
Anderson told police he put the gun in the broiler because he did not want it to be out when electronic monitoring officers visited, Assistant State’s Attorney Sean Kelly said.
Investigators learned Anderson had requested to move his EM address to a new location, so the sheriff’s police went there and found three more guns, according to the allegations.
The Sheriff’s Police Gun Investigation Team subsequently traced the weapons and discovered that Patterson, who is licensed to purchase and own firearms, bought four of them in Indiana, according to the sheriff’s office.
Investigators claim Patterson told them she purchased four guns for Anderson and one for herself, using money Anderson transferred to her through an app..
Judge Maryam Ahmad said Tuesday that Patterson, who is charged with gunrunning, could get out of jail by posting 10% of her $100,000 bail. Patterson’s defense attorney said she lives with her mother and child, attends college part time, and works full time for Amazon.
Judge Mary Marubio held Anderson without bail Anderson on May 2.
His defense attorney told Marubio, “I find it incredible to believe that someone who’s facing an armed habitual criminal charge … would tell officers he ‘just likes guns’ and so he keeps purchasing them.”
Anderson’s attorney also questioned the legality of the search and questioned his ability to access to some of the seized guns.
