once the police make the report, don't they ( guns) automatically become labeled in a computer system as stolen by the police? or do i have to notify a Govt agency or something, or do the police do that? would'nt the pawn shop have to run the serial number to check if it's stolen? i called the NRA to see how they cou\ld help me, but the only thing they told me was to file a claim form for the insurance that the membership benefit entitles me to. i should recieve that in the mail..they also gave me a lawyer referral # to call..oh, we;ll!
When firearms are reported stolen, they are entered into a database called III (aka Triple I), which is a national database.
To the best of my knowledge, all pawnshops have some type of waiting period for the turnaround of firearms that are sold to the shop. In WA State, it is 30 days.
This, of course, assumes one thing: that you gave the serial numbers of the firearms to the police. Unfortunately, if you don't have the serial numbers, there is nothing we can do for you except take a theft report.
The fact that they took guns AND ammunition points right at someone that you know, or someone that might have come into your house as the "friend of a friend", or perhaps a friend's teenage children.
Unfortunately, good quality guns command a high price on the street; if these thieves decide to go that route, you might never see your guns again.
To all: get a gun safe. Not the sheet metal kind, but the kind that will give you hernias trying to move it. One with a key-locking combination is a bonus.
Hide the safe out of public view, and in a place that is not visible to anyone looking in your window.
Get an alarm system; preferably one that is monitored locally.
Good luck on getting your guns back!