Kobe Artis Charged With 2 Felony Gun Transfers as Philly Seeks $2.5 Million Bail
Updated
Updated · NBC Philadelphia · May 12
Kobe Artis Charged With 2 Felony Gun Transfers as Philly Seeks $2.5 Million Bail
9 articles · Updated · NBC Philadelphia · May 12
Kobe Artis was charged Tuesday after prosecutors said a May 4 social media video showed him handing an AR-style rifle and a handgun to a person barred from possessing firearms.
Two felony illegal-transfer counts anchor several gun charges announced by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, who said Artis is in custody and his office is seeking $2.5 million bail.
The video, filmed in Philadelphia's Kensington neighborhood, went viral after showing Artis walking publicly with the rifle; City Councilmember Quetcy Lozada said she forwarded it to the DA's office.
The case has become a flashpoint in Kensington, where officials cast the arrest as both a response to online intimidation and a broader push to curb illegal guns.
Are crackdowns on individual sellers effective while the sources of illegal guns remain open?
How is social media surveillance changing the fight against illegal gun sales?
With new state gun bans emerging, is a major Second Amendment legal showdown inevitable?