Social media posts land Independence man back behind bars after illegal gun purchase
An Independence man pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday to illegally purchasing a firearm through another person that he then showed off in various posts on his social media account.
Kurup C. Seuell, 21, pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a firearm as a felon, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore. Seuell obtained the weapon through a straw purchaser one month after he was released from state prison on parole.
The pair bought the Glock 9mm handgun in January 2021 from Frontier Justice, a firearms store and shooting range in Lee’s Summit.
Seuell had been released on parole in December 2020 after a 2018 conviction for stealing.
Later that day, Seuell posted a video on Facebook showing the handgun in his lap. Officials said an investigation into his social media accounts from January 2021 to March 2023 showed Seuell often in possession of various assault-style rifles, handguns, guns with extended magazines, marijuana and large amounts of cash.
Officials estimate he displayed at least eight but no more than 99 different firearms on his accounts. He also made posts to sell guns, and showed himself firing them at shooting ranges.
In March 2023, when investigators were searching for Seuell to arrest him, he posted a video of himself firing an apparent automatic-style pistol with a drum-style magazine at Crossfire Recreation Center in Independence. Investigators said they obtained Seuell’s signed copy of the shooting range safety rules and surveillance video showing Seuell firing various weapons at the range and getting 50 rounds of ammunition from the center’s gun store.
Officials found Seuell’s address the following day and law enforcement chased him as he fled the home. Eventually, they found his vehicle at a gas station and arrested him at the store.
Officers found the firearms from Seuell’s social media and the surveillance footage in his residence, as well as the ammo he got from the gun store.
Seuell now faces up to 10 years in federal prison without parole.
