St. Louis, MO (KTRS) Three area pawn shop employees are facing charges related to the illegal sale of firearms.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, 31-year-old Carlos Jones, 36-year-old Robert Thornton, and 44-year-old Steven Johnson – all worked at Piazza Jewelry and Pawn located in the 10-thousand block of Page.

170 guns used in crimes were tracked back to the pawn shop. Several of the recovered firearms were linked to violent crimes – including assaults, shootings, robberies, and homicides.

All three men are charged with unlawful transfer of a firearm to a convicted felon and making false statements on the record required to be kept by a licensed firearms dealer.