Six men have been arrested and charged with being part of a group that used stolen cars to ram gun stores around Southern California and grab a total of more than 300 firearms.
The burglaries include Fowler’s Gun Room in Orange, where a group of men used a stolen Kia sedan, reversed it into the shop and stole 70 firearms early Saturday morning, federal and local law enforcement officials said.
The men are being charged with conspiracy to steal the weapons from the premises of federal firearms licensees, authorities said. They could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted, said Ciaran McEvoy, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“These were dangerous actions,” U.S. District Magistrate Judge John Early told the defendants, who had their first court appearance on Tuesday. “While members of the public weren’t in immediate danger from your actions, it was dangerous to steal cars at 3 a.m. It was dangerous to then crash those cars into commercial buildings, and it was dangerous to sell those guns to God knows who.”
The stores were:
-
-
- Chaparral Coin and Gun in Murrieta, California, on October 9, 2023, where 43 firearms were stolen,
- Poway Weapons and Gear in Poway, California, on March 25, 2024, where 78 firearms were stolen,
- Firearms Unknown in Oceanside, California on June 17, 2024, where 33 firearms were stolen,
- Ammo Bros in Riverside, California on June 18, 2024, where 25 firearms were stolen,
- Camarillo Gun Store in Camarillo, California on July 1, 2024, where 63 firearms were stolen, and
- Fowler’s Gun Room in Orange, California, on July 13, 2024, where 70 firearms were stolen.
-
The men also attempted to break in and steal firearms from additional stores from Ammo Bros in Ontario on June 12, Fallbrook Guns and Ammo in Fallbrook on June 13 and Smokin Barrel Gun Store in Simi Valley on July 9, authorities said.
The defendants are:
-
-
-
-
- Cross Arjay Goree, a.k.a. “C3”, 18, of Lake Elsinore,
- Caine Aiden Goree, 22, of Lake Elsinore,
- Kenneth Gilmore III, a.k.a. “Kenny”, 19, of Las Vegas,
- Brendan Markel Hawkins, 19, of Lake Elsinore,
- Calvin Logan Gray, 18, of Murietta, and
- Kendall Eric Johnson, a.k.a. “K3”, 23, of Lake Elsinore.
-
-
-
Cross Goree, Caine Goree and Johnson were arrested Saturday after officers executed a federal search warrant at their Lake Elsinore home, McEvoy said. While announcing their presence, officers said they saw Gilmore and Cross attempting to run from the back of the home. Both were later detained.
While searching the home, officers found 45 firearms that had been stolen from Fowler’s Gun Room, two firearms that had been stolen from the Camarillo Gun Store, one stolen from Chaparral Coin and Gun and one stolen from Poway Weapons and Gear, McEvoy said.
In each case, the suspects would use a stolen car, ram the storefront to get inside and then run in and smash display cases to steal the firearms.
The burglaries span about nine months.
The suspects allegedly sold some of the firearms on the black market and some were recovered in separate criminal investigations, McEvoy said.
In all the heists, the burglars wore dark pants, hooded sweatshirts, masks and some wore gloves, according to an affidavit filed with the case.
The affidavit included several screenshots of posts from an Instagram account believed to be Cross Goree’s that showed stolen guns and cash. Authorities also used cell phone data from some of the suspects’ phones which showed they were at least at some of the gun stores during the burglaries.
After the Poway heist, authorities tracked the getaway vehicle to a home in Las Vegas, the affidavit says. Authorities recovered some of the stolen firearms after conducting traffic stops on vehicles seen leaving the home.
Five other firearms stolen from Poway Weapons and Gear were recovered by Los Angeles police in unrelated incidents in Los Angeles and San Pedro, the affidavit says.
The owner at Fowler’s Gun Store estimated the suspects stole $115,000 worth of firearms and caused $111,000 in structural damage, according to the affidavit. Camarillo Gun Store’s owner estimated an inventory loss of more than $46,000 and $80,000 worth of property damage. Poway Weapons and Gear estimated property damage at $60,000 while Chaparral Gun and Coin estimated total losses at $35,000.
Bail for each defendant was set at $20,000. They are scheduled to be back in court for a hearing on July 30.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, San Diego Sheriff’s Department, and Orange Police Department are investigating.
See also:
Four arrested in Nevada after burglars steal 78 guns in smash-and-grab at Poway gun shop
Thieves smash car into Oceanside gun store, make off with firearms
Staff writer Hunter Lee contributed to this story.
