Woman Accused of Buying Guns Used in 4 Killings

Federal agents arrested an Essex woman on gun charges Saturday, saying she knew fugitive Joseph C. Palczynski was a convicted felon but supplied him with the shotgun and rifle he allegedly used to kill four people and wound another last week.

The arrest came as hundreds of state, federal and local officers teamed in search of Palczynski, a violent man with a history of mental problems.

Area residents, on edge as the search entered its fourth day, avoided schools and many businesses while police in patrol cars, in helicopters and on foot with dog units followed dozens of tips and reported sightings. The leads only produced more frustration.

The Essex woman police arrested was identified as Constance Ann Waugh. Waugh, 48, was charged with making a false statement in connection with the purchase of a gun.

According to an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Waugh told agents she knew Palczynski well and referred to him by a nickname of “Joby.”

Palczynski is accused of a rampage that began Tuesday night with the shooting deaths of a Baltimore husband and wife who had taken in his former girlfriend after she filed assault charges against him.

He is also accused of kidnapping the woman and killing a neighbor who tried to come to her rescue. He is accused of shooting a woman to death the next night in an attempted carjacking in nearby Chase.

According to the affidavit filed in connection with Waugh’s arrest, Palczynski visited her at her home Monday and told her that he could not buy a gun because of a prior criminal record for assault, according to the affidavit, and that he wanted the guns for target practice.

The affidavit says Waugh went into a gun shop with Palczynski and bought a Mossberg 500 12-gauge shotgun, a sling to hold it, a pistol grip and ammunition. She also purchased three 20-round magazines for an AR-15, paying $368.49.

The two then went to another gun store where Palczynski told Waugh to buy a Colt AR-15 .223-caliber rifle and a box of ammunition. According to the affidavit, Waugh paid for the weapon and ammunition with $1,600 in cash.

Waugh and Palczynski then went to Waugh’s house, where he told her he would be back to pick up the guns later that night. “He returned about 11:30 p.m. . . . and gave her a handmade bill of sale indicating that he paid her $1,600 for an AR-15 and a shotgun,” the affidavit said.

Police say Palczynski began using the weapons the next day at a Baltimore apartment.

There, he allegedly kidnapped his estranged girlfriend, Tracy Whitehead, 22, and fatally shot George Shenk, 49; his wife, Gloria Jean, 50; and their neighbor, David Meyers, 42.

In the attempted carjacking, he is accused of killing Jennifer L. McDonel, 37, and then wounding a 2-year-old who was riding in a passing car.