[originalhypa]

Originally Posted by Zedbra

^ Evildoer!

I know.
It's sad what I have become. I've gone from a being a law abiding, civilized, working family man, to a heinous over capacity mag collector. I didn't even see it coming.



I did however ensure that all of my firearms and ammo are stored seperately and securely. I wouldn't want this to happen to me.

CanadianGunNutz.com

Originally Posted by MadcapMagician

I'd like to tell my story in regards to storing firearms and ammunition improperly so that it might help those in the future.

To make this ABUNDANTLY CLEAR. The Court Case is about to be settled. I ALREADY have a lawyer. I have ALREADY been charged. I am about to be convicted. Please keep your "seek legal advice" and "you shouldn't be admitting to this online crap to yourself.

I'm writing this so that anyone who has the misfortune of going through this might gain some insight.

First the story:

April 1, 2016. I get a call at work from our Local Police saying our home (I live with my wife) was broken into and I should come home right away. Thinking that this could be an April Fools prank I phoned the police station and they confirmed the situation.

So I raced home (took 10 minutes) and there were 6 police vehicles in my yard and blocking my street. When I step up to the door I can clearly see the door had been kicked in as there were splinters of wood all over the floor. There were 8 police officers inside and outside (looking very jittery, hands on pistols) my home as I walked up. They confirmed my identity as I walked in the door and told me the situation.

The house had been broken into. The neighbors (with nothing but good intentions) phoned the police before us to report the door was swinging in the wind. They had searched the home to establish that there was no longer anyone there. During the search they discovered I was a firearms enthusiast and that I in fact had some firearms carelessly stored as well as ammunition.

As I walked in and they identified me they told me right off the bat that I was being detained and would potentially be criminally charged for careless storage. I was forced to sit in my dining room for 6 hours as they meticulously photographed and catalogued all of my firearms items. The B & E was completely forgotten.

Shortly after my wife came home and she was politely instructed to "sit down and not move". She was understandably upset as our home had just been broken into and she has many sentimental items as well as a large amount of photography equipment.

Over the course of the six hours I repeatedly asked (politely, always politely) if not me than if my wife could survey the home to establish what had been taken and perhaps help them in their investigation. They told us repeatedly no.

One particularly cheery officer said "How do I know you're not going to go pull out a shotgun and shoot me?" I see his logic although I had been nothing but pleasant, polite and courteous the entire time. Not to mention my wife is crying beside me.

So the officers asked me to write down a list of all the firearms I owned so that they can reconcile what I had downstairs and what I was supposed to have.

I did all of this willingly and also told them where the firearms were as far as my memory could recall. Some people say that you incriminate yourself if you admit to leaving a firearm out, however they're down with the guns looking at them out so whats the point in being silent about it?

At the end of the day I had been arrested. The arresting officer did make the effort to have the charge paperwork and warrants brought to my home to be signed off on as opposed to me having to go down to the police station and me possibly stay the night. So that I appreciate.

VERY LUCKILY none of the firearms had been stolen. It appears the robbers hadn't even gone into the basement (where ALL firearms related items had been stored).

Items stolen included but not limited to:
- Laptop
- 2 Tablets
- 3 iPods
- Phone
- GPS
- Harddrives
- Cash
- Jewellery
- Moisturizer
- Makeup brush
- Shoes
- Tools
- Used boxers (wtf?)
- Socks
- Bags
- Pillow Case
- Gift Cards

Things not taken - Liquor, Guns, Ammo, Prescription Narcotics

After the smoked settled (and I was arrested a second time) I was charged with: 3 counts Unsafe Storage Firearm or Ammunition and 1 count Possession of a Prohibited Device (butterfly knife).

The police seized:

All Ammo
All firearms
All magazines (AR, pistol, Ruger - about 40 in total)
2 incredible Stun Batons
Expandable Asp
Bear Spray
Reloading Supplies
Various knives.
Approx value $20,000.00.

I've now been through the court process. The probable outcome is as follows:
Charged with 1 count Unsafe Storage
Charged with 1 count Prohibited Device
$250.00 fine for Each. $200.00 in admin fees (I think?)
1 Year Firearms Ban
Lost RPAL
Criminal Record for minimum of 5 years. Limited travel into USA without special permission.
Ability to transfer or sell firearms withing 120 days of final conviction. Including firearms unsafely stored. Ammunition seized and destroyed. Magazines - Unknown.

My moral of this story, first and foremost:

LOCK EVERYTHING INCLUDING ALL AMMO AT ALL TIMES NO MATTER WHAT.

It is due to my own negligence that this has occurred as much as it pissed me off how the circumstances arose.

Police don't give a rats ass about your break in as soon as the see firearms. I even pointed out CLEAR fingerprints where the perpetrators had attempted to lift a window. They didn't dust them or anything like that.

I was cooperative with the police and I believe that gained me a bit of leniency however in hindsight I may have been better off to not say anything. But I don't regret being helpful. Does it suck I'm losing thousands and thousands of dollars? Of course. But it's my own fault.

If anyone can learn anything it is that they have to be careful. At all times. You never know that random day someone knocks down your door. That disassembled shotgun that you didn't put away because you were cleaning it or that rifle you were bedding is illegal if you leave the home and they will NAIL YOUR ASS.

It is also highly advisable to buy that legal defense through the CSSA. It would have saved me a lot of time, money and I would have known how to go about this entire process right off the bat. Instead I did what I perceived to be right.

So on a positive note. I'm selling all my stuff on the EE if anyone needs AR components, reloading equipment or supplies, holsters, scopes, stocks, etc.

And the icing on the cake. Robbers took a s**t in our toilet... And didn't flush... A$$holes.

Please don't turn this into a flame or bashing thread. I was scared and didn't have a clue about what to do when this happened. I've now been through it and paid for it. It's not easy. It's slow as hell. It's taken (or will take) 5 months to be settled approximately. All the while you're paranoid you're going to get pulled over or detained for something else and you're also paranoid someone is going to break into your home again.