$38K In Guns, Cash Stolen From Cars In Alpharetta

ALPHARETTA, GA — The Alpharetta Department of Public Safety is investigating a slew of entering autos during which tens of thousands of dollars in guns, electronics and cash were taken from three vehicles over the weekend.

The vehicles targeted by the unknown thieves were parked outside Dave and Buster's at 6500 North Point Parkway late Saturday, Oct. 20 and early Sunday, Oct. 21. According to incident reports provided by the agency, the victims all arrived at Dave and Buster's around 11 p.m. Saturday after wrapping up a charity event held at SharpShooters USA that raised funds for breast cancer awareness. Officers were dispatched to a call of the thefts in the parking lot after midnight Oct. 21.

One of the victims said he had 12 firearms, some of which include three GLOCKs, two revolvers, two rifles, a .50-caliber Desert Eagle pistol and two STC DVC 9-millimeter guns, and camera gear taken from his 2016 GMC Sierra. The right rear window of the truck had been smashed, the report states. The 12 firearms, according to the report, have a value of about $22,500.

The owner of a second vehicle, a 2012 Dodge pickup truck, also told police his rear driver's side window had also been shattered and a GLOCK 23 converted into a 9 millimeter pistol, an AR-15 with a suppressor, a laptop, a range-ready bag with seven magazines and laptop bag were all taken from the truck. Those items have a value of $6,700, another Alpharetta police incident report adds.

According to the third report, the owner of a 2014 Ford Fusion said two rifles, two handguns, a laptop and $1,310 in cash were taken from the car while parked outside Dave and Buster's. The report indicates the value of those items to be about $9,329. The car owner told police there was no damage to his vehicle and "that he thought he locked his car doors before going into Dave and Buster's," the officer wrote in the report.

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The charity event the complainants attended was organized by 2a Angels from noon to 9 p.m. Saturday at SharpShooters USA at 11261 Alpharetta Highway in Roswell. According to an EventBrite invitation to the event, the fundraiser brought in money for the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Raffle tickets were sold and the grand prize included a five-day big game hunting trip in South Africa. Patch has reached out to the organizer of the event to get the group's reaction to the thefts and their impact on their charitable efforts.

Tom Deets, president of SharpShooters USA, told Patch news of the thefts made him "angry" because the three people "acted so irresponsibly." Deets said organizers behind the fundraiser were posting about their day on SnapChat and Instagram, broadcasting their every move to the public. Deets said SharpShooters and others in the firearms industry routinely preach about safety and security, and implore gun owners to properly store their weapons so they do not fall into the wrong hands.

“It is contradictory to what everyone in the firearms industry preaches over and over," he said of the thefts.

One of the people reporting the thefts, he said, is a part-time instructor at SharpShooters. Deets said that man's role at his establishment "will absolutely be in question" due to him not securing his weapons in his own vehicle.

"I won’t tolerate that type of irresponsible behavior," Deets said.

The incident reports indicate other entering auto reports occurred in the vicinity of Dave and Buster's, and a Dodge Charger with a drive-out tag was seen in the area where the thefts took place at the time of the incidents.

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