Disagree.Exactly what I was saying. It's just step one when attempting to trace the firearm to a possible suspect but doesn't implicate the last owner of record without proof.
It may have been lawfully transferred to another without requiring a 4473.
I did not correct my typo in time...
They -ARE- connected to the crime. Doesnt mean they are a suspect, but they are connected.
The law will only care that they didn't report it stolen, which is the law and does make them part of the other crime.
Same for an FFL that allows a strawman to slip thru their cracks.