Firearms In the
United States, a straw purchaser of a firearm at a
federally licensed firearm dealership who lies about the identity of the ultimate possessor of the gun can be charged with making false statements on a federal
Firearms Transaction Record, which is a
felony. Note that in this case, purchasing the item for another person is
ipso facto illegal, regardless of that person's status as a legal possessor. If a firearm is purchased as a gift, the transaction is not a straw purchase, and the person buying the gift is considered the end user. It is illegal for any person not in possession of a
Federal Firearms License to purchase a firearm with the intention of resale. Private purchases in lawful sales made outside of federally regulated dealerships are not subject to such rules and are federally legal unless the gun is used in a crime with the prior knowledge of the straw purchaser.
Alcohol Straw purchases of alcohol are illegal in most jurisdictions when a person under the legal
drinking age requests that a person above the legal age purchase alcohol for the underage person, and the straw purchaser knows or might reasonably assume based on the circumstances that the person is under the legal age. In
England and Wales, buying alcohol on behalf of a person under 18 is a
summary offence under section 149 of the
Licensing Act 2003, punishable by an unlimited fine (level 5 on the
standard scale). There is an exception for beer, wine or cider served to a 16 or 17 year old with a meal at a table.
Tobacco and nicotine products As of October 2015, it is an offence to buy tobacco, cigarette papers (for the purpose of smoking tobacco) or
e-cigarettes on behalf of individuals under 18 years of age in
England and Wales. It was already an offence in Scotland.
Mortgage loans The use of a
straw person to obtain auto or mortgage loan funds is illegal if the funds are misused intentionally. In Canada, the
Bank of Montreal sued hundreds of people, including
Conservative Party of Canada MP
Devinder Shory, for allegedly being involved in a mortgage fraud in which the bank lost $30 million. The bank alleged that straw buyers, in exchange for a cash payment, applied for mortgage loans in the
Calgary area on behalf of other parties and knew before submitting the applications that the loans would not be paid. The lawsuits were settled out of court. In
United States v. Quintero-Lopez, two men were charged with locating eight straw purchasers for homes and helping the straw purchasers falsify pay history documents in order to obtain $8.3 million in mortgage loans. The government alleged these loan purchases were illegal because the straw purchasers inflated their incomes as part of an attempt to defraud the lenders. In 2011, one of the two straw purchaser recruiters was sentenced to six years in prison and the other was sentenced to one year of probation. Straw or nominee purchases of mortgage loans are legal when intent to defraud is not present. == See also ==