C&R Gun Collection Stolen in Texas

[beeker77]

SAN ANTONIO - On October 30th, 2005, I was the victim of an armed home invasion, bound, and robbed. A Sunday afternoon, watching the Cowboys game. Three young, pistol-toting thugs sneaked in through my garage (ouside door was barely open enough for my cats, inside door into house was unlocked), held a pistol to my head, tied my hands behind my back with cable ties, demanded combinations and keys, stole a total of 30 firearms, loaded them in my car, and stole the car. This was not random; they knew what they wanted and where everything was.

Lessons learned:
1. Don't leave the garage door up, even a tiny bit.
2. Record all unknown visitors' name and address.
3. Invest in a video surveillance system aimed at your interior main entryway. Doesn't need to be elaborate or expensive. Must be unobtrusive/invisible/concealed.

Police report done, dusted for prints, detective assigned, BATF report done, local agent assigned, car recovered (not trashed or stripped, but undercarriage damaged from apparently driving over a curb or rock). No guns recovered. Listing given to all local gun shops and pawn shops, and distributed at gun shows. Posted on other shooting/collecting forums. Situation analyzed, suggestions received. Thanks. :banghead:

Firearms stolen, each with proper sling and original sheathed bayonet. All in Very Good+ to Excellent condition, except where noted:

Model / Caliber / S/N

1895 Ludwig Loewe/Berlin Mauser Modelo Chileno / 7mm / D8890

1895 Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf Swede Carbine Model 1894 / 6.5mm / 6419

1896 Springfield Armory US Model 1896 / .30-40 (Krag) / 56378

1898 Springfield Armory US Model 1898 / .30-40 (Krag) / 176948 (all chromed)

1900 Mauser Oberndorf Swede Sniper Model 1896/M41B / 6.5mm / 41028 (with matching s/n AJACK/Berlin 4x scope)

1900 Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf Swede Rifle Model 1896 / 6.5mm / 50692

1909 DWM Berlin Modelo Argentino rifle / 7.65mm / F2553

1909 DWM Berlin Modelo Argentino carbine / 7.65mm / B3338

1912 Ludwig Loewe M1908 Brazilian / 7mm / B2913

1916 Spandau GEW98 / 8mm / 3483 (condition = Good)

1918 Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf GEW98 / 8mm / 488l (Condition = Good)

1918 Remington US M1917 / .30-06 / 545996

1918 Springfield Armory US M1903, Mark 1 / .30-06 / 1035463

1937 Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf DSM 34 / .22 / 20242

1939 Model 36 MAS / 7.5mm / K91656

1942 Husqvarna Swede m38B / 6.5mm / 649738

1943 Remington US M1903A3 / .30-06 / 3873766

1944 German/Yugoslavian re-arsenaled K98k / 8mm / D5888

1944 Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf K98k / 8mm / 48704 c

1944 Waffenfabrik Mauser Oberndorf/Walther P38 pistol / 9mm / 1767

1945 BSA Enfield Nr. 4 / .303 Brit / T38546

1947 Winchester 75T / 0.22 / 40034

1947 Yugoslavian m24/47 / 8mm / 216186

1948 Yugoslavian M48 / 8mm / T10721

1949 Fabrique National Israeli Trainer rifle K98k22 / 0.22 / 1610 (Condition = good)

1954 Harrington & Richardson Arms US Rifle Caliber .30 M1 / .30-06 / 4789937

1970 Norinco TU-KKW Trainer rifle / .22 / 9103307

1964 Savage Anschütz / .22 / 799214 A

1975 Walther P38 pistol / 9mm / 208729

1984 Harrington & Richarson US M12 / .22 / AX520897

2003 Taurus Millenium PT111 semi-auto pistol / 9mm / TVH43231

 

[longhorngunman]

I'm sorry for your loss and glad that you and your family are physically unhurt. I'm a fellow C&R nut and it's sad that some thugs took your hard earned collection. Your story is another reason why I try to be armed at all times, even at home. Here's hoping that you get your collection back and the hoodlums all die a slow and painfull death due to gutshot by .22's!

 

[MechAg94]

Sorry to hear that man.

I guess stuff like that was a reason my Mom and Dad always impressed on my brother and I to Never talk about what stuff we had at the house or what guns my Dad had. It still sticks with me I guess. People hear I shoot and ask me how many guns I have. I guess I automatically get defensive when people ask me that. I try not to talk about it unless I know someone else shoots, even then in restricted detail. Not that this happened in your case. If they knew what they were looking for they knew somehow.

I have a friend in Sulphur, LA whose buddy got all his guns stolen. He was pretty sure it was guys who had worked on his house though he wasn't there when it happened. He didn't have a safe and his inventory was on a floppy disk that he later found out was corrupted. Couldn't even give the police serial numbers or anything.

 

[McCall911]

My sympathies to you, beeker77.

Sounds like you did everything right, so maybe there's hope at least some of your collection will be recovered and the animals that did this never breathe a free breath again.

 

[MarshallDodge]

WOW! Sorry for your loss.
That was a heck of a collection but who would go through the trouble of stealing C&R's? Not to say they are not worth anything but the gangbangers are looking for handguns or assault rifles. Is there a black market for collector's stuff out there?

 

[Zundfolge]

...not to say they are not worth anything but the gangbangers are looking for handguns or assault rifles. Is there a black market for collector's stuff out there?

Thugs don't know the difference between C&R and brand new ... all they know is that any gun is valuable on the black market.

And most criminals aren't interested in "assault" rifles ... they prefer handguns and shotguns. (the most common firearm used in homicides in the US is a .22 revolver according to the FBI).


I'm sorry for your loss beeker ... and more than the guns is your loss of peace of mind. I have been robbed at gunpoint and had my house burglarized but to have both happen at the same time would be extremely unnerving.

 

[KriegHund]

Im sorry That was a nice collection, and i hope you found the...ya know.

At least you were unhurt. Perhaps now you will consider that even in the home you are not safe from criminals.

 

[rero360]

damn that really sucks, hopefully you'll be able yo get your collection back when they try and pawn it off. I hope those scumbags rot in prison for the rest of their lives. good luck man, and keep us informed on any updates.

 

[ccw007]

That sucks. I am glad you and your family are safe though.
I have a question. How did they find your guns? Did they seem to know you had them or were they in a safe they found? The reason I ask is I have a Brother in Law that is a LEO he played down the threat of home invasions. He did say that the ones he had been to the attackers knew what they were after most of the time and sometimes it was not just money. Could the attack been just for your guns? If so how did they know you had them?

 

[BsChoy]

I am so sorry to hear that...I have no idea what I would do in that circumstance...you had some nuce sounding firearms...especialy that "1900 Mauser Oberndorf Swede Sniper Model 1896/M41B / 6.5mm / 41028 (with matching s/n AJACK/Berlin 4x scope)" what would that be worth nowadays?

 

[losangeles]

Very sorry to hear about your loss. Good to hear you and your family are fine.

That is a really fine collection you had. Can you sit down and try to recollect everyone who possibly knew about the collection. Spend some time to make a list of everybody who might have known. Then, evaluate each prospect carefully.

Question: Were these guns purchased on a C&R license? I don't want to be paranoid, but I'd hate it if it might have been a professional job with someone who has access to data of C&R licensees. But we can't discount any possibility.

 

[losangeles]

Thugs don't know the difference between C&R and brand new ... all they know is that any gun is valuable on the black market.

I hope they catch those guys, for the beeker's sake.

In general, though, I'd be concerned too if the guys are more than thugs, professionals who know how to do the deed and launder the collection. And I'm concerned too if it's a professional outfit who can identify and case out C&R collections repetitively. It sounds like some criminals could potentially see this as a lucrative niche specialty, worthy of pursuing over and over again.