A Journal Sentinel investigation uncovered deep flaws and a profound lack of government oversight in undercover ATF stings across the country, including in Milwaukee.
Across the Nation
ATF operations nationwide employed rogue tactics, including tapping those with mental disabilities to promote the storefronts — then charging them with gun crimes.
When a felon-turned-informant later committed another gun crime himself, agents and a prosecutor quietly took care of their key witness, protecting their cases in the process.
In Milwaukee
An ATF storefront sting operation in the Riverwest neighborhood did not snare any major dealers or take down a gang. Instead, it resulted in a string of mistakes and failures.
Burglars who hit the ATF's Milwaukee storefront, making off with nearly $40,000 worth of merchandise, knew the place. They had been there before, selling guns to agents.
Interactive Timeline


ATF's flawed storefront sting: Agents from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives opened a storefront sting operation in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood last year, trying to snag gun sellers and drug dealers.

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