This entry is not directly about the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, the Brady bill, the National Rifle Association, the events of April 16, 2007 in Blacksburg, VA, or any gun control movement.

This entry is, however, directly related to the intent of some people to make money hand-over-fist with no regard to the consequences of their actions.

Would've posted this yesterday had I seen it before the server got all ouruboros.

From yesterday's Times-Picayune:

Feds shut gun shop they link to violence

Owners accused of forgery, arming criminals

Thursday, May 17, 2007

By Michelle Hunter

 

Federal investigators have permanently shuttered Elliott's Gun Shop, a huge arms dealer in Old Jefferson they say has fueled violent crime in the New Orleans area through shady business practices, including illegal sales to ineligible buyers and forging police officer identities to secure discounts on inventory.

 

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on Wednesday arrested Elliott's owner, Herman Eicke III, 65, of Kenner, and the man they say actually ran the business, former owner Timothy Harris Sr., 54, of Jefferson. Both were booked with aggravated identity theft, according to ATF Special Agent in Charge David Harper. Agents also arrested Harris' companion and longtime Elliott's employee, Rebecca Zitzmann, 42, of Jefferson, and booked her with falsifying federal firearms records.

 

"We're confident that we've eliminated a major source and supply of crime guns to the New Orleans area," said Harper, whose agency called Elliott's, at 3008 Jefferson Highway, one of the top sources of firearms recovered in crimes in the United States.

 

The ATF traced about 2,300 firearms to Elliott's between March 1, 2002, and March 7, 2007, Harper said. Of those guns, 127 were linked to murder investigations, and 517 were part of inquiries into drug-related crimes. More than 90 percent of the guns were recovered in Louisiana.

 

Neither Eicke, Harris nor Zitzmann could be reached for comment Wednesday. But Eicke has previously said that because of the number of guns sold by Elliott's, one of the largest dealers in south Louisiana, it is inevitable that some guns involved in crimes will be traced back to his store.

 

Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Newell Normand said Elliott's had been on the department's radar for some time, as guns from the store's shelves have appeared in the hands of convicted felons.

 

"We have AK-47s and other assault rifles sold by this gun store and other stores which represent a significant problem for our officers," Normand said.

 

All weapons seized

 

In addition to the arrests, the ATF seized the weapons, ammunition and all the accouterments sold by Elliott's during a raid Wednesday morning. Agents, joined by investigators from the U.S. Secret Service, descended upon Elliott's about 9 a.m. and closed off access to the business, a modest one-story warehouse inside the northbound loop onto Causeway Boulevard.

 

Teams of agents filed in and out of the store's front door -- walking past the "Open" sign that glowed fluorescent red and blue -- carting out white boxes of all sizes.

 

"We're extremely pleased with what we've been able to obtain so far," said Robert Browning, assistant special agent in charge for the ATF, as he overlooked the raid.

 

Harper did not disclose whether a specific incident triggered the investigation, but the affidavit notes that by early 2006, ATF agents began to see large numbers of guns associated with Elliott's. The agency had investigated several cases of convicted felons in possession of firearms from the store. And a deeper look revealed that the time between the sale of the gun and the crime was short, according to Harper.

 

Although each of those factors alone doesn't point to wrongdoing on the part of a dealer, together they are indicators of "straw sales" in which one person buys a gun for another who cannot legally buy a gun.

 

Zitzmann made just such a sale in January during an ATF undercover sting at the Great Southern Gun and Knife Show in Kenner, authorities said. Although a convicted felon was the customer who picked out a Glock pistol, inquired about the gun's features, negotiated the price and paid for the weapon, Zitzmann allowed a companion with the felon to fill out the federal background paperwork required to buy a gun, according to her arrest warrant affidavit.

 

The companion, who signed forms claiming to be the gun buyer, gave the firearm to the felon in front of Zitzmann after the sale was completed. The companion was an ATF agent.

 

Authorities said the proof of one straw purchase means it's possible others took place. Harper said he's confident more charges will follow.

 

Forgery scheme alleged

 

But Elliott's dabbled in more than just illegal gun sales, according to the ATF. The company also used police officer credentials without permission and forged signatures to buy deeply discounted firearms from gun manufacturer Glock, weapons meant only for law enforcement.

 

An employee-turned-informant related the scam to investigators and supplied evidence, authorities said.

 

After police officers provided their credentials on forms for legitimate gun purchases, Eicke and Harris altered the forms to buy extra guns for their stock room, according to the affidavit. The forgery allowed them to buy a gun at the manufacturer's $399 law enforcement discount; Elliott's could then sell that weapon to civilians for about $520. With extras including a night-vision scope and an additional magazine, local gun dealers estimated that Elliott's was doubling its profit on the Glocks.

 

"The scheme was devised solely to increase their profits," Harper said.

 

That part of the case was investigated by the Secret Service, which handles identity theft. In one instance, agents found that Harris and Eicke submitted the credentials for Harahan police officer Chris Cantrell to buy Glock pistols on Oct. 30, 2006, and Jan. 23, 2007. But when interviewed by agents, Cantrell said he hadn't bought a weapon from Elliott's since December, 2005, according to the affidavit.

 

"The police officers are victims in this case," Browning said.

 

Records show this isn't Elliott's first run-in with the ATF. Harris had his federal firearms license revoked in early 2005 because of repeated violations during inspections of the business, then called Elliott's Small Arms, the search affidavit said. In April 2005, Harris transferred the business to Eicke, who until then had been an employee.

 

Elliott's also surfaced in a federal court case against a California gun dealer when the ATF put together a list of the country's top-five crime gun dealers for 2005. Elliott's made the list at No. 3, with 442 traces of guns linked to crimes. More current statistics were not available.

 

The Marinello gun

 

Though investigators could not provide any specific cases in which guns sold by Elliott's were used in crimes, the store infamously sold former sports broadcaster Vincent Marinello a .38-caliber pistol and the unique Nyclad bullets that authorities allege he used to shoot his estranged wife, Elizabeth Marinello, last year. That case has not yet come to trial.

 

The arrests and the allegations against Elliott's come as no surprise to some local gun dealers.

 

"They were always considered to be a less than a moral store around here," said Michael Mayer, owner of Jefferson Gun Outlet in Metairie.

 

But Terri Farlander, Harris' younger sister, said she was shocked by the news of his arrest. She said the whole case could be a misunderstanding.

 

"If he did that he's stupid, but he's not bad. He's a good person," she said.

 

. . . . . . .

 

Michelle Hunter can be reached at mhunter@timespicayune.com or (504) 883-7054.

Something tells me that's the genetics talking when Ms. Farlander comes to her brother's defense there at the end: if you've been shut down already by the feds, you should know better than to put yourself at the risk of being stung, like at the gun show.

Got a softball game tonight. Probably going to post tomorrow with the results, and another computer component (with an open, unsolicited endorsement!) early next week.

-KIE