Firearms stolen from Range Lake home
Pistol, assault rifle and 2,000 rounds of ammo taken during burglary, police say
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
There are serious concerns after a hand gun and a high-powered assault rifle, along with thousands of rounds of ammunition, were stolen from a residence in the Range Lake area on March 13.
RCMP Const. Elenore Sturko stated in a news release that an AR-15 rifle, a .40-calibre Glock pistol and 2,000 rounds of ammunition were among the items taken during the burglary. It happened between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. she stated.
Sturko said the firearms were legally purchased and owned, adding they did not belong to a police officer. Both firearms are popular worldwide with law enforcement agencies.
"You have to have a restricted firearms licence to possess those firearms," Sturko said. "To buy them you need a possession and acquisition licence in Canada."
Sturko said she believes the ammunition stolen were bullets for the rifle. Other items were also stolen and the investigation is ongoing, Sturko said.
It is the second major gun theft in the city in the past 18 months. At least eight firearms were taken during a break-in at a home-based gunsmith shop in September, 2013.
RCMP said at the time that handguns, shotguns and rifles were taken. The owner of MMO Tactical Gunsmithing had the proper permit to run the business out of his home. Sturko said the investigation in that case remains ongoing. The theft last Friday is one of three burglaries being investigated by RCMP.
A television was stolen from a downtown residence and hockey equipment as well as other items were taken from a garage in the downtown area. Sturko said at this point there is no evidence linking the three burglaries.
