3 brothers plead guilty to botched gun shop burglaries in Bethel Park, Moon Township

Three brothers in their early 20s pleaded guilty to plotting to commit an offense against the United States for their roles in a night of back-to-back botched attempts to steal firearms from gun shops in Pittsburgh’s southern suburbs.

The sibling defendants — Jerwahn Atkins, 24; Jerquay Atkins, 23; and Jamir Atkins, 22 — each entered their guilty pleas on the charge of conspiracy against a federal firearm licensee before U.S. District Judge W. Scott Hardy. U.S. Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman announced the pleas Wednesday.

The convictions stem from the night of May 30 of last year.

The three Atkins men first tried stealing from Allegheny Arms and Gun Works in Bethel Park, according to prosecutors and the guilty pleas signed by the defendants.

They used a crowbar to get inside, triggering a burglary alarm. The alarm prompted the men to run from the store.

Two of them — Jamir Atkins and Jerwhan Atkins — then drove to the National Armory in Moon Township.

Again, they used a crowbar to break into the federal gun licensee, and again, they set off the alarm — “causing the two brothers to flee once more,” federal prosecutors said.

The three men will be held in federal custody until their sentencing hearings, which are scheduled for late August.

Each faces up to five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000, according to Kaufman.

Assistant U.S. attorney Brendan J. McKenna prosecuted the case with help from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. commonly referred to as the ATF.