WESTLAND, Mich. – A man who claimed to break his cat’s leg on video and then made a splint for it with his grandmother was arrested in Westland because he posted pictures with a shotgun despite being a convicted felon, officials said.
Jonathan Andrzej Urso, 33, is named in a criminal complaint that was unsealed Tuesday, Sept. 19. It accuses him of felon in possession of a firearm.
Investigation background
Officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives began investigating Urso on Friday after receiving a tip from a confidential source who said there was a shotgun at Urso’s house in Redford Township.
A review of Urso’s criminal history shows he was convicted of first-degree home invasion in 2017 and breaking and entering a vehicle with damage in 2019. He spent more than a year in prison, which means he’s not allowed to possess a gun.
The confidential source told authorities that people were afraid of what Urso might do with the shotgun. Officials said they also learned that Urso might have injured or killed small animals.
ATF agents find Facebook, YouTube posts
ATF agents searched Urso’s Facebook and YouTube accounts and came across multiple pictures and videos of him holding a black 12-gauge shotgun, they said.
In one YouTube video, Urso threatened his family and removed the gunpowder from a Winchester shotgun shell so he could test fire the gun without a live round going off, the criminal complaint says. Urso fired the gun in the video, agents said.
Urso posted pictures of himself with the shotgun on April 13, April 30, and June 23, authorities said. The shotgun was shown in another picture on May 8.
Two YouTube videos posted on July 14 showed Urso with the shotgun, as well, court records show.
In another YouTube video, Urso claimed to have broken a bone in his cat’s leg. He said the bone was sticking out, and then he showed the cat in several portions of the video, according to officials.
With help from his grandmother, Urso made a splint to try to repair the cat’s leg, the criminal complaint says.
Urso arrested
ATF agents reached out to their confidential source Monday and learned that Urso had left the Redford Township home and was living out of his car. Social media posts helped them find him in the parking lot of a McDonald’s on Warren Road in Westland.
A Westland police officer ran Urso’s license plate and discovered the car didn’t have valid insurance, so he spoke to Urso, who was in the driver’s seat, officials said.
Urso obliged when the officer asked him to step out of the car. He told police that he didn’t have a weapon and gave consent for a vehicle search, according to authorities.
The officer said he found a Mossberg model 500A 12-gauge shotgun inside a gray backpack. It was loaded with five shotgun shells, the criminal complaint says.
Urso was arrested on suspicion of felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a dangerous weapon.
During an interview later that day, Urso admitted to possessing the shotgun, police said. He told them he had acquired it through a trade from someone on Facebook Marketplace.
The criminal complaint concludes there’s probable cause that Urso illegally possessed a firearm.