The ring is accused of using stolen cars to ram the stores and grab the guns.
Six men have been arrested and charged with being part of a group that used stolen cars to ram gun stores around Southern California and grab a total of more than 300 firearms.
The burglaries include Fowler’s Gun Room in Orange, where a group of men used a stolen Kia sedan, reversed it into the shop and stole 70 firearms early Saturday morning, federal and local law enforcement officials said.
The men are being charged with conspiracy to steal the weapons from the premises of federal firearms licensees, authorities said. They could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted, said Ciaran McEvoy, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The stores were:
They also attempted to break in and steal firearms from additional stores from Ammo Bros in Ontario on June 12, Fallbrook Guns and Ammo in Fallbrook on June 13 and Smokin Barrel Gun Store in Simi Valley on July 9, authorities said.
The defendants are:
Cross Goree, Caine Goree and Johnson were arrested Saturday after officers executed a federal search warrant at their Lake Elsinore home, McEvoy said. While announcing their presence, officers said they saw Gilmore and Cross attempting to run from the back of the home. Both were later detained.
While searching the home, officers found 45 firearms that had been stolen from Fowler’s Gun Room, two firearms that had been stolen from the Camarillo Gun Store, one stolen from Chaparral Coin and Gun and one stolen from Poway Weapons and Gear, McEvoy said.
In each case, the suspects would use a stolen car, ram the storefront to get inside and then run in and smash display cases to steal the firearms.
The burglaries span about nine months.
The suspects allegedly sold some of the firearms on the black market and some were recovered in separate criminal investigations, McEvoy said.
In all the heists, the burglars wore dark pants, hooded sweatshirts, masks and some wore gloves, according to an affidavit filed with the case.
The affidavit included several screenshots of posts from an Instagram account believed to be Cross Goree’s that showed stolen guns and cash. Authorities also used cell phone data from some of the suspects’ phones which showed they were at least at some of the gun stores during the burglaries.
After the Poway heist, authorities tracked the getaway vehicle to a home in Las Vegas, the affidavit says. Authorities recovered some of the stolen firearms after conducting traffic stops on vehicles seen leaving the home.
Five other firearms stolen from Poway Weapons and Gear were recovered by Los Angeles police in unrelated incidents in Los Angeles and San Pedro, the affidavit says.
The owner at Fowler’s Gun Store estimated the suspects stole $115,000 worth of firearms and caused $111,000 in structural damage, according to the affidavit. Camarillo Gun Store’s owner estimated an inventory loss of more than $46,000 and $80,000 worth of property damage. Poway Weapons and Gear estimated property damage at $60,000 while Chaparral Gun and Coin estimated total losses at $35,000.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, San Diego Sheriff’s Department, and Orange Police Department are investigating.
See also:
Four arrested in Nevada after burglars steal 78 guns in smash-and-grab at Poway gun shop
Thieves smash car into Oceanside gun store, make off with firearms
