In the fall of 2009, ATF agents installed a secret phone line and hidden cameras in a ceiling panel and wall at Andre Howard's Lone Wolf gun store.I have spent most of my adult life working in gun stores, and that is just absolutely chilling.
They gave him one basic instruction: Sell guns to every illegal purchaser who walks through the door.
For 15 months, Howard did as he was told.
When you're in the gun biz, the BATFEIEIO is not just the gun cops; they're the regulatory agency who has the power of economic life & death over your store and everybody who works in it. When an ATF guy walks in, no matter how friendly and cooperative he is, in the back of your mind there is always the lurking thought that this is the guy who can determine, with the stroke of a pen, whether everybody here is going to be able to afford to eat next week or not.
Further, it's hard to imagine an FFL turning down a request that, on its face, seems simple and straightforward: You want me to help in this program you say will put a dent in these narcotrafficantes that are turning the border counties into a movie set from Mad Max? Sure! Where do I sign up?
Talk about getting stuck between a rock and a hard place.
22 comments:
Disturbing. I worked part time in a gunshop years ago as an off duty job and couldn't believe some of the attempt's people made to do a strawman sale. The fact that they were so obvious about it was even worse.
Would you ever consider going back to retail sales in a good gunshop or running an indoor range? It's almost as wasted gift not to see you do so.
I refuse to have another FFL until the BATFE is gone.
I'm not so sure about my current C&R, as well.
It's chilling to the core. I don't know what it takes to get this put to the top of the news pile. Solyndra didn't leave bodies stacked up like cord wood, as Gunwalker did
I hate to say it, but the half a $billion wasted on Solyndra can probably be found between the sofa cushions at the Department of Energy. Washington misplaces more than that every year.
The original story is from the LATimes? Interesting.
And I trust there is paperwork granting the sellers immunity.
- - -
This is, too -
Howard said he does not own a gun, does not hunt and does not belong to the National Rifle Association.
It may sound like an odd thing to many readers of this blog - OK, it sounds odd to me - but I can understand it. While I used to enjoy target shooting, and would if I did it again, for a number of reasons (mainly laziness) I do not myself own a firearm. That does mean I am against owning, or even carrying, firearms: on the contrary, I support both.
Chilling... And if there wasn't an email trail on some of these, I'm not sure what would have happened to these dealers (and their employees).
Oops -
That does NOT mean ...
In other news, man oh man can that FFL holder sure pick a winning name for his retail establishment, "Lone Wolf gun store"
That's going to look great whenever testifying in this post-9/11 world.
-SM
Team Obama's gotta go!
Chilling, indeed!
I live in Phoenix, and have made purchases @ Lone Wolf as have a number of friends and acquaintances.
I acquired a Glock 17 there on the same day the Clinton AWB passed - more as political protest, than anything.
BATFE maroons! (and that defames Mel Blanc!)
When an ATF guy walks in, no matter how friendly and cooperative he is, in the back of your mind there is always the lurking thought that this is the guy who can determine, with the stroke of a pen, whether everybody here is going to be able to afford to eat next week or not.
And yet the manager of the fledgeling gun store that I almost went to work didn't see why I wasn't amused at his "abusive ATF agent" prank call. I actually had to bring up the appropriate Aesop's Fable and even then it didn't sink in.
That has absolutely Rham Emmanuel's fingerprints all over it - so totally Chicago, an "offer" they couldn't refuse.
Free tip:
"A federal agent told me to" is no defense to a crime. Law enforcement officers do NOT have the authority to give citizens permission to commit crimes.
If you are asked to do something like this- for which there could be perfectly legitimate reasons- get an immunity grant from the U. S. Attorney and Federal Judge in your district.
Make copies. Archive them in several places.
I was working at a large gun shop that had the misfortune of being a place that sold - unwittingly, so not like F&F - many firearms to Whitey Bulger's cronies to load up on the good ship Valhalla out of Glucester, bound for the IRA.
We were visited by many ATF (before the 'E') guys, who took up residence for a while. They scared the bejeezus out of me. If one then said, "Go ahead, sell all you want as crooked as you can get, we don't mind," I'd bet we would all be on board.
They scare you one way or another, before or after. Having been in a similar situation with the ATF almost 3 decades ago, I really feel for the dealers & employees involved now.
Makes you wish that anyone even remotely connected with law enforcement had some version of the Hippocratic Oath taken by doctors.
Instead of "First, do no harm", it would instead say something like "No matter how much political pressure is brought to bear, never, EVER break the law!"
I'm probably just being naive, but what do you expect from a nuance-lacking plebe from Flyover Country?
El Capitan, They do. They swear an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution. Too bad no one cares about that particular document these days.
How many divisions does the Constitution have, again?
Staghounds: What you wrote there is right prudent, and scary. Not all of us can remember to say the right magic words when accosted by badge-bearers, though.
It's all felonies, all the way down.
Isn't this the same sort of thing that ultimately got Randy Weaver's family shot up?
"We're from the government, and we're here to tell you that you're going to help... or else."
Some AZ shops declined others did not and made lots of money selling guns to the drug cartels...I'm not gonna cry for Lone Wolf of J&G sales.
Anon 8:00,
Did you decline?
If not, you can shut up with the Monday morning quarterbacking, sport.
Dunno Tam. Just read the tape excerpts at SSI and I'm not feeling real sympathetic toward Mr. Howard right now.
http://sipseystreetirregulars.blogspot.com/2011/09/more-from-cbs-dealer-and-atf-frankly.html
http://sipseystreetirregulars.blogspot.com/2011/09/cbs-atf-fast-and-furious-secret-audio.html
Post a Comment