Federal agents have arrested an Atlanta man suspected of burglarizing Georgia stores and stealing 295 guns.
James Clifford Roberts, a convicted felon, was detained on Jan. 11 in southeast Atlanta by agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which has been investigating a series of firearms thefts from Georgia gun dealers.
In a Jan. 11 filing in federal court in Atlanta, investigators allege that Roberts burglarized six Georgia dealers between October and December 2018. The stores include Acme Pawn in Jonesboro, where five guns were allegedly stolen; Deer Creek Gun Shop in Marietta, where 21 guns were stolen; Alpha Bravo Armory in Alpharetta were 10 guns were stolen; Dead Center Gun Range in Buford, where 58 guns were taken; High Caliber Firearms in Canton, where 180 guns and three silencers were stolen; and Country Boy Sports in Homer, Ga., where 21 guns were stolen. Roberts allegedly tried unsuccessfully to break into a seventh store, Gun Commanders in Cleveland, Ga., according to the court filing.
The ATF later offered a $2,500 reward for information related to the Hi-Caliber Firearms burglary. Illegally obtained guns from Georgia have frequently been trafficked in New York.
In most of the thefts, the electrical power to the gun dealers' buildings was disabled by removing the meter box and cutting all nearby cables.
Investigators got a break in the case on Dec. 29 when an attempt was made to burglarize Gun Commanders in Cleveland, north of Atlanta. Although the electric meters on the business's building were removed, a neighboring security camera captured video showing a red Hyundai Sonata. The car was later spotted by the White County Sheriffs Office and its tag number obtained. Investigators traced the vehicle to Atlanta, where on Jan. 8 they were able to place a tracking device on the car.
On Jan. 11, after the car was driven to Ringgold, Ga., in the middle of the night, then back to Atlanta, where later in the day Roberts was arrested.
The feds' court filing has many more details about the burglaries.
https://media.bizj.us/view/img/11189851/roberts.pdf
James Clifford Roberts, a convicted felon, was detained on Jan. 11 in southeast Atlanta by agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which has been investigating a series of firearms thefts from Georgia gun dealers.
In a Jan. 11 filing in federal court in Atlanta, investigators allege that Roberts burglarized six Georgia dealers between October and December 2018. The stores include Acme Pawn in Jonesboro, where five guns were allegedly stolen; Deer Creek Gun Shop in Marietta, where 21 guns were stolen; Alpha Bravo Armory in Alpharetta were 10 guns were stolen; Dead Center Gun Range in Buford, where 58 guns were taken; High Caliber Firearms in Canton, where 180 guns and three silencers were stolen; and Country Boy Sports in Homer, Ga., where 21 guns were stolen. Roberts allegedly tried unsuccessfully to break into a seventh store, Gun Commanders in Cleveland, Ga., according to the court filing.
The ATF later offered a $2,500 reward for information related to the Hi-Caliber Firearms burglary. Illegally obtained guns from Georgia have frequently been trafficked in New York.
In most of the thefts, the electrical power to the gun dealers' buildings was disabled by removing the meter box and cutting all nearby cables.
Investigators got a break in the case on Dec. 29 when an attempt was made to burglarize Gun Commanders in Cleveland, north of Atlanta. Although the electric meters on the business's building were removed, a neighboring security camera captured video showing a red Hyundai Sonata. The car was later spotted by the White County Sheriffs Office and its tag number obtained. Investigators traced the vehicle to Atlanta, where on Jan. 8 they were able to place a tracking device on the car.
On Jan. 11, after the car was driven to Ringgold, Ga., in the middle of the night, then back to Atlanta, where later in the day Roberts was arrested.
The feds' court filing has many more details about the burglaries.
https://media.bizj.us/view/img/11189851/roberts.pdf
180 guns from High Caliber.
