Rob Bresnahan used Venmo to purchase firearms and ammo in 2020

Rob Bresnahan violated Venmo’s terms of service when he bought a gun and sold ammunition in 2020. Gun safety advocates raise concerns over Pennsylvania’s lax gun laws. 

Gun safety advocates are raising concerns after a congressional candidate used Venmo, a popular mobile payment application, to buy and sell ammunition and purchase a gun.

Rob Bresnahan, who is running against Congressman Matt Cartwright (D-Luzerne), a gun safety supporter, made a series of transactions in April 2020 and November 2020 where he used the popular mobile payment app to buy and sell bulk “.223/.556” ammunition and to purchase a gun. Bresnahan appears to have had his Venmo app settings to where anyone could see his transactions.

Screenshot of Rob Bresnahan’s publicly available Venmo account.

“We know that the reason that we have such a problem with gun violence in this country is because of easy access to weapons,” Gina Pelusi, a gun safety advocate and the Legislative Lead for the Pennsylvania Moms Demand Action Chapter, said in an interview. 

“Obviously we don’t know what type of gun here was sold or purchased so it’s a little bit hard to say if the law was technically broken in this case, but I think it speaks to the fact that it’s so easy and so commonplace to buy and sell a weapon in this country.”

Breshanan, who received $1,000 from the National Rifle Association, made a series of transactions on Venmo in April 2020 and Nov. 2020 with a friend. The first transaction occurred in April 2020 when Bresnahan sold bulk “.223/.556 ammo,” which is widely used in AR-15s and other assault rifles, and then in November, Bresnahan appeared to purchase a gun and ammo from that same friend. 

It doesn’t appear that Bresnahan violated any laws due to Pennsylvania’s lax gun laws, but it does appear that he violated Venmo’s terms and conditions, which prohibits users from purchasing or selling ammunition, firearms or other firearms parts and accessories. 

“You may not use Venmo to conduct transactions that: […] involve ammunition, firearms, firearm parts or accessories and any weapons or knives regulated under applicable law,” according to Venmo’s website.

Pennsylvania’s Republican controlled State Senate has been sitting on universal background check legislation that would prevent these types of transactions since May 2023. 

Gun owners are required to undergo background checks when purchasing a handgun or when purchasing rifles from a gun store, but thanks to the gun show loophole, those purchasing guns privately do not have to go through federal background checks. 

“These Venmo transactions demonstrate the gap in Pennsylvania’s gun laws that allows for anyone — including those who pose a danger to themselves or others — to obtain firearms without a background check, no questions asked,” said Jessica Scott, a volunteer with the Pennsylvania chapter of Moms Demand Action, said in a statement. 

“While it’s long past time for the State Senate to take action on expanding background checks, we’re grateful to the Biden-Harris Administration and ATF for taking action to help close loopholes in the federal background check system. As this story underscores, gun safety is on the ballot in November and it’s never been more important to elect gun sense candidates up and down the ticket.”

Bresnahan’s campaign refused to provide comment for the story or if there should be safeguards in place for these types of private transactions, saying they would not ‘engage with liberal blogs.