Thieves steal firearms from 2 Pittsburgh-area gun stores
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Two gun stores in the Pittsburgh area were robbed over the last two days.
Police have surveillance video that allegedly shows three men casing Seconds Count Firearms in Mercer County. They're accused of crashing a car into the store at the corner of North Diamond and Pitt streets at around 5:15 a.m. on Monday. The suspects took off with an unknown number of guns.
"They just grabbed them and ran. They are taking inventory now," Mercer Borough Police Chief Robert Davis said.
According to Davis, the suspects' car got stuck in the building and just missed a gas line.
They allegedly ran off and stole another car to get away. That car was found not too far away from the scene. The whole ordeal lasted only a few minutes.
"The whole block would have went up, so that's just another charge they are going to get," Chief Davis said about the suspects almost hitting the gas line.
On Monday night, Pittsburgh Public Safety said it conducted a traffic stop at West Warrington Avenue and Saw Mill Run Boulevard after a "bolo" for suspects believed to be involved in the firearms theft. Police later said they arrested four people -- 19-year-old Mehki Reed and three juveniles -- after officers found guns inside.
The burglary at Seconds Count Firearms came a little over 24 hours after the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said Duke Sport Shop in Shenango Township, Lawrence County was hit.
Investigators said a group of people broke in around 4:20 a.m. on Sunday and made off with several guns. There was no word on specific models of guns taken, but officers said a car was not used to break into the store like in Mercer County. Investigators are still figuring out how the suspects got in.
"You have guns out there that should be tracked, and they're out there in the public. It's very dangerous," Chief Davis said.
RC Firearms in New Kensington had a truck ram into it and two men take off with 24 guns in January. The two suspects were charged in February by a grand jury.
It's hard to track down stolen guns, police say
According to police, once a gun or gun is stolen, it can be hard to track them down. Communication between police agencies helped with finding the alleged suspects in the Seconds Count Firearms burglary.
"Crime doesn't really recognize any boundaries so what has to happen is there has to be communication between law enforcement in these different areas," Jackson Township Police Chief Terry Seilhamer said.
According to Seilhamer, stolen guns are reported to a database to try and track them. The problem is tracking them is not that easy.
"Very rarely do you find out where it is until it's used in a crime or it's found somewhere abandoned," Seilhamer said.
Between those two scenarios, it's usually found after a crime. The chief says motives for stealing guns include trading them or selling them for drugs. Lately. it could just be a fast way to make some money.
"They decide we're just going to steal a few, sell it, and get money that way," Seilhamer said.
When they are traced down, the guns can be found in some cases states away from the original crime.
"A lot of times these guns were finding their way back to urban areas in states where they have tighter gun laws," Seilhamer said.
Police are still looking for the suspects in the Lawrence County case. There is no word yet of if the robberies are connected.
