CLINTON, Miss. ( WJTV ) – A campaign that targets illegal gun purchases is underway in the Jackson-metro area. It’s called “Don’t Lie for the Other Guy.”

The month-long campaign was announced Thursday morning at Downrange Gun and Tactical in Clinton by the National Shooting Sport Foundation, ATF and the Department of Justice.

The goal is to educate firearm retailers and customers about how to spot and deter illegal straw purchases. A straw purchase is when a person buys a firearm for another individual, who is not illegally allowed to own a gun.

Joshua Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF, said the Jackson area was chosen due to the high level of gun crime. He said guns bought in Mississippi are trafficked to other parts of the country.

“Mississippi, we know that it is a sore state for some of these cities – Chicago, New York, Oakland, San Francisco – for the firearms being trafficked from here to those states. So, those are some of the factors ATF uses, not all inclusive, but those are some of the factors ATF uses to help focus this message towards the most impacted area. So, we get the message out to try to stop the activity,” said Jackson.

According to the ATF, anyone who does a straw purchase could face up to 15 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.

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