Woman Sentenced for Gun Purchase

URBANA, Ill. (AP) — Ashantae Corruthers, a 30-year-old woman from Indianapolis, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for her involvement in a straw purchase of a handgun that was later used in a deadly shootout with police in central Illinois. The sentencing took place on Tuesday, as announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Illinois. Corruthers pleaded guilty in June 2023 to charges of conspiracy to illegally purchase and transfer a firearm, as well as conspiracy to engage in misleading conduct. She admitted to conspiring with Regina Lewis and Darion Lafayette to acquire the firearm in 2020 from an Indianapolis gun store. Lafayette, a convicted felon, was prohibited from purchasing firearms legally, prompting the illegal transaction. In her application, Corruthers falsely claimed that she was buying the gun for herself, a certification she later retracted when she reported the firearm stolen to the Indianapolis police in 2021. The gun was used in a tragic incident on May 19, 2021, when Lafayette shot and killed Officer Christopher Oberheim and wounded Officer Jeffrey Creel during a response to a domestic disturbance in Champaign, Illinois. Lafayette was subsequently shot and killed during the confrontation with police. This case highlights the serious consequences of illegal firearm purchases and the impact they can have on law enforcement and community safety.