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INSIDE JOB? Class III Dealer Cleaned Out By Machine Gun Thieves
Posted by Bob Owens on September 23, 2014 at 10:16 am
This trailer belonging to Profire Arms & Supply was full of firearms and ammunition before being cleaned-out by what appears to be professional thieves.
Andrew Hall, owner of Profire Arms & Supply in Indianapolis, loaded his trailer this past Friday with firearms and ammunition in preparation for a event he'd be attending on Saturday.
The local media is reporting that 29 weapons—including an Uzi submachine gun, and M16 and AKM assault rifles—are now missing, along with 20,000 rounds of ammunition in what looks like a professional theft.
The trailer had been loaded up and locked Friday night. The guns included M-16 rifles, AK-47s, an Uzi, and different shotgun and handgun models. Other accessories included suppressors.
According to an IMPD incident report, Profire owner Andrew Hall told officers "the ball lock on the tongue was engaged as well as a rear tire lock, and that he has the only key. There was no evidence on the scene that either had been tampered with and there were no obvious signs of tire drag marks."
"We want to recover as many of those weapons as we can so they don't fall into the wrong hands," said IMPD Lt. Chris Bailey. "And that they aren't used to take an innocent life or the life of a police officer."
FOX59 has learned that the guns were being stored in the trailer Friday night in preparation for a Saturday "swap meet" event at Parabellum Firing Range, about five miles down Rockville Road in Avon.
"We couldn't believe it," said Tom Sellmer, owner of Parabellum Firing Rage. "That's like your worst nightmare for something like that to happen."
Sellmer doesn't have any theories on who stole the the trailer but he thinks it must have been someone who either saw Profire employees loading the trailer up on Friday or somebody who knew Profire would be storing and transporting weapons to the firing range the next day.
Profire staff would not confirm the number or type of firearms taken, nor the amount of ammunition when contacted by Bearing Arms. The store employee that we spoke with says that the store was told not to speak to the media by the ATF, and they aren't sure where Fox 59 got their information (our best guess: a leak in the local ATF office).
This photo from Profire's Facebook page shows some of the firearms and suppressors that may be among those stolen.
The criminals that hit the trailer knew how to defeat both theft-deterrent systems engaged on the trailer without apparently missing a beat, managed to unload a significant number of firearms and a large amount of ammunition without anyone noticing, and then ditched the trailer in a spot where they were having an event with many trailers just like it, so that it virtually disappeared.
This doesn't strike me as the work of amateurs, but instead as the work of criminals who knew in advance that:
This is an example of what Profire brought to their last event in Avon. Note the M249 SAW on the left. The MG42 on the floor (right) was out for repairs and was not likely on the trailer. (Image via Facebook)
If the arms are as the media described—a mix of NFA weapons including assault rifles and submachine guns among others—it really is a worst-case scenario.
Let's hope that these weapons are recovered soon, though I have a guy feeling that these firearms are long gone already, and probably on their way to a buyer
Posted by Bob Owens on September 23, 2014 at 10:16 am
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This trailer belonging to Profire Arms & Supply was full of firearms and ammunition before being cleaned-out by what appears to be professional thieves.
Andrew Hall, owner of Profire Arms & Supply in Indianapolis, loaded his trailer this past Friday with firearms and ammunition in preparation for a event he'd be attending on Saturday.
The local media is reporting that 29 weapons—including an Uzi submachine gun, and M16 and AKM assault rifles—are now missing, along with 20,000 rounds of ammunition in what looks like a professional theft.
The trailer had been loaded up and locked Friday night. The guns included M-16 rifles, AK-47s, an Uzi, and different shotgun and handgun models. Other accessories included suppressors.
According to an IMPD incident report, Profire owner Andrew Hall told officers "the ball lock on the tongue was engaged as well as a rear tire lock, and that he has the only key. There was no evidence on the scene that either had been tampered with and there were no obvious signs of tire drag marks."
"We want to recover as many of those weapons as we can so they don't fall into the wrong hands," said IMPD Lt. Chris Bailey. "And that they aren't used to take an innocent life or the life of a police officer."
FOX59 has learned that the guns were being stored in the trailer Friday night in preparation for a Saturday "swap meet" event at Parabellum Firing Range, about five miles down Rockville Road in Avon.
"We couldn't believe it," said Tom Sellmer, owner of Parabellum Firing Rage. "That's like your worst nightmare for something like that to happen."
Sellmer doesn't have any theories on who stole the the trailer but he thinks it must have been someone who either saw Profire employees loading the trailer up on Friday or somebody who knew Profire would be storing and transporting weapons to the firing range the next day.
Profire staff would not confirm the number or type of firearms taken, nor the amount of ammunition when contacted by Bearing Arms. The store employee that we spoke with says that the store was told not to speak to the media by the ATF, and they aren't sure where Fox 59 got their information (our best guess: a leak in the local ATF office).
This photo from Profire's Facebook page shows some of the firearms and suppressors that may be among those stolen.
The criminals that hit the trailer knew how to defeat both theft-deterrent systems engaged on the trailer without apparently missing a beat, managed to unload a significant number of firearms and a large amount of ammunition without anyone noticing, and then ditched the trailer in a spot where they were having an event with many trailers just like it, so that it virtually disappeared.
This doesn't strike me as the work of amateurs, but instead as the work of criminals who knew in advance that:
- Profire would be attending an event on Saturday
- Profire would load their trailer the night before
- which anti-theft devices the trailer used, and how to defeat them (it almost sounds as if the criminals had a duplicate of the owner's tire lock key)
- where there would be a good place to unload this large amount of ordnance without witnesses (my guess is inside a warehouse or a similar large building)
- where to dump the trailer where it wouldn't be noticed right away
This is an example of what Profire brought to their last event in Avon. Note the M249 SAW on the left. The MG42 on the floor (right) was out for repairs and was not likely on the trailer. (Image via Facebook)
If the arms are as the media described—a mix of NFA weapons including assault rifles and submachine guns among others—it really is a worst-case scenario.
Let's hope that these weapons are recovered soon, though I have a guy feeling that these firearms are long gone already, and probably on their way to a buyer
