NJ Sues 'Reckless' Gun Shop In Morris County Following Burglary

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — A Morris County gun shop is being sued by state officials after being burglarized earlier this year.

FSS Armory, a New Jersey-licensed gun dealer, had 20 firearms, including pistols, shotguns, rifles and a revolver, stolen from their property in Pine Brook in January, authorities said on Tuesday.

Most of the guns have yet to be recovered, and those that have been found were recovered at crime scenes or in the hands of criminals, including persons trafficking the guns on the black market in New Jersey and neighboring states, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said.

The suit, filed in state Superior Court in Morristown, accused store owner Ross Osias of "reckless" and "substandard storage and security practices."

According to Platkin, FSS Armory stored stacks of guns within easy reach of a ground-floor window, even showcasing their location on its website, a decision that was both unlawful and reckless.

On the day of the burglary, the suspects allegedly found the Morris County shop by searching “gun stores in NJ” on a cell phone and breaking a front window, authorities say.

Following the burglary, no alarm sounded, at least not loud enough to generate a response. No silent alarm notified the store owner, any of the store’s employees, or law enforcement, authorities said.

According to the complaint, FSS Armory failed to properly store its guns in violation of state law, which requires that guns be secured overnight and not be housed in any window or adjacent location where they may be viewed from the outside.

"Gun industry members like FSS Armory that flout these laws allow guns to flow from their storefronts to criminals. Guns in the wrong hands are dangerous, and in the hands of bad actors, black market guns threaten the safety and peace of every New Jersey resident," the lawsuit states.

According to state authorities, the company's shortcomings endangered New Jersey citizens as well as those in surrounding states by allowing firearms to be trafficked and placed in the hands of criminals and others who are not legally entitled to acquire a firearm.

“New Jersey’s residents demand and deserve to live free from fear of gun violence, and that requires we do everything possible to get illegal guns off our streets and out of our communities,” Platkin said. “Today’s action should make New Jersey’s position clear: Gun traffickers and their enablers will be held accountable when their actions place our residents in danger. Gun dealers and the firearms industry must abide by our laws or face the consequences.”

The FSS Armory Store formally opened in December 2019. A variety of handguns, rifles, shotguns, ammo, gun parts and accessories, and knives are all available at the shop. FSS Armory also has a public website, "www.fssarmory.com," where it advertises its services and inventory and offers customer reviews.

According to state investigators, FSS Armory began storing unsecured rifles and piles of handguns and gun boxes in an open room right in front of a ground-floor window of the business, near a glass-doored entry from the store's parking lot, no later than July 2022.

The ground-floor window had minimal safeguards against access or entry. The interior side was protected only by two or three narrow metal bars running from top to bottom, with gaps between them wide enough for an adult to reach through, the lawsuit stated.

Authorities ultimately apprehended a Newark man, Luis Martinez, who was sentenced to 11 years in prison in November for his role in the crime. An accused accomplice, Leila Acevedo, was also charged in September.

According to Platkin, the investigation is still ongoing because investigators have not found all of the burglars—or all of the firearms.

Some of the guns have turned up, records show.

Shortly after the burglary, the Paterson Police Department recovered a pistol during a sweep of an illegal nightclub after a patron likely discarded it on the floor in response to police arrival.

Within a few weeks, the stolen guns “passed from the burglars to others who have been formally charged with the selling of guns and narcotics,” according to the lawsuit.

On Jan. 17, trafficking suspects sold one of the stolen rifles in Queens, New York, during a controlled-buy operation.

"In the months that followed, the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York and the New York Police Department initiated an investigation into guns and fentanyl sales coming into New York from New Jersey. The investigation identified three suspects, all from New Jersey, who sold four additional stolen FSS Armory shotguns and one stolen FSS Armory pistol," the lawsuit stated.

The suit against FSS Armory was one of two announced Tuesday by the Statewide Affirmative Firearms Enforcement Office, or SAFE, which was established last year especially to prosecute gun manufacturers and sellers under New Jersey's public nuisance statutes.

In a separate action, the Attorney General’s Office also sued two Pennsylvania-based companies, Patriot Enterprises Worldwide LLC and JSD Supply, over the sale of untraceable “ghost gun” parts to New Jersey residents at Pennsylvania gun shows.

“Selling firearms is a serious business, and irresponsible behavior by gun industry members can have dire consequences for the public,” said SAFE Director Ravi Ramanathan. “The unlawful and unreasonable actions of FSS Armory, JSD Supply, and Eagle Shows have caused significant harms to our communities, and they must be held accountable.”