Felon faces new gun charges
BUTLER TWP — A felon was arrested Sunday on charges he took a handgun from a home and then later returned it.
In between, Butler Township police said, Keel E. Welch, 30, of Butler, allegedly tried to trade the gun for drugs.
District Judge William O’Donnell on Monday arraigned Welch on felony charges of illegal possession of a firearm, carrying a firearm without a concealed carry license and receiving stolen property.
He was placed in the Butler County Prison on $25,000 bail following arraignment.
The defendant allegedly took the 9 mm pistol Friday while visiting a couple at their Old Plank Estates apartment, according to court documents.
Owner Kasey Stewart discovered the gun missing from a back bedroom and notified police Sunday. He suspected Welch of taking the firearm.
But the suspect denied taking the pistol after an officer got to the apartment to investigate the theft report. The officer left but not before advising Welch that if he took the gun, “it needed to be returned,” a police affidavit said.
Stewart told police that later that day, after Welch had left the apartment, he heard a knock at the door. When he opened the door, no one was there. At the door step, however, was a gray plastic bag.
In the bag, police said, was the missing pistol.
Police went to Welch’s home where he admitted taking the gun and secretly returning it, documents said.
During their investigation, police spoke to another man who claimed the defendant had approached him Saturday night offering to sell or swap a pistol.
“(The man) stated that Welch wanted an ‘8 ball’ and was looking to trade the gun for cash or drugs,” the police affidavit said.
An “8 ball” is a slang term commonly used to describe an eighth of an ounce of drugs.
The gun Welch showed the man allegedly matched the description of Stewart’s pistol.
Police in their criminal complaint noted that the defendant has multiple felony convictions, including in Pennsylvania for fleeing police and in Florida for grand larceny.
In the commonwealth, felons are not allowed to possess or purchase a firearm.
