Car break ins are very prevalent in Dunwoody but at least the Sandy Springs Police didn't leave the assault rifle sitting on the passenger seat of an unlocked vehicle. I would hate to be the next person arrested at Perimeter Mall for breaking into a vehicle.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=MjMJj29zyXg
Cops’ assault rifle, badge, vest stolen from car
By Marcus K. Garner for the AJC, Oct 08, 2008
A car break-in Tuesday evening in Dunwoody netted thieves an unusual booty — a Sandy Springs police assault rifle, badge and Kevlar vest.
“I think these guys got more than they bargained for,” Sandy Springs police spokesman Lt. Steve Rose said.
A pair of Sandy Springs detectives parked an unmarked police car in a parking deck in Dunwoody near Perimeter Mall while they were on dinner break during their regular shift about 8 p.m. Tuesday, Rose said.
While they were gone, thieves got into the trunk of the car and took the badge, protective vest and AR-50 assault rifle — a lightweight semi-automatic rifle with a light attached to the muzzle. They also took two ammunition magazines with about 30 rounds in each.
Rose speculated that the thieves possibly saw one of the detectives, who he wouldn’t identify, put her purse in the trunk.
The robbers apparently used a screwdriver to force open the latch to one of the car’s rear doors, then opened the trunk from inside the passenger compartment, he said.
Because the forced entry wasn’t apparent, the detectives didn’t immediately realize their car had been burglarized, Rose said. A regionwide alert went out describing the theft.
“We’ve got a couple of leads, and we’ll follow anything we can get,” Rose said. “We want that weapon back or off the street.”
DeKalb County police are leading the criminal investigation. Sandy Springs will conduct an internal investigation.
Rose said he doubted either officer would be disciplined.
“We’ll review any way we could’ve avoided this. It’s just an example. … No one’s immune from theft,” Rose said.
3 comments:
Oops, AJC changed the story from an AR-50 to an AR-15 after I posted. Big difference in the size of the weapon.
It was pretty obvious it was a typo or a mis-quote since their description was of a semi-auto with two 30-round clips.
It's worrisome that our cops are carrying that kind of firepower, especially that casually. However if they must carry one of these, it would have been better had it been the AR-50. Single-shot accuracy has lots of advantages over multi-clip "spray and pray" in a suburban environment.
First off, they are 30-round magazines (not clips). Using an AR-50 in suburban environment is not a good idea. Many urban/suburban police departments have moved away from shotguns and into the AR-15 rifle. Why? Using 55 grain LE ammo the .223 caliber round will have greatly reduced penetration through solid objects. The Glock round (that Dunwoody Police Task Force wants to issue our 'on the job' guys) and the pellets from a shotgun blast will penetrate 9-12 walls of normal suburban construction while the 55 grain .223 round will penetrate only 2.5 walls due to the round’s low cross sectional density. I hope the Dunwoody PD opts for the AR-150 rifle instead of the shotgun. The only reason for LE to have a shotgun is for launching less-lethal rounds/ bean bags.
Two problems I have with SS Police. 1. Lt Rose calls it a 'tactical weapon', 'not a typical gun'. What does that mean? Is it extra nasty because it's "tactical". Come on Steve, you sound like a member of the Brady Campaign. 2. The weapon should have been secured in the trunk. Many aftermarket rack systems out there. The gun and vest are easy items to obtain (legal and illegal) but losing that badge is quite serious as well. How long before someone starts posing as a SS officer?
Regarding thad's concern of LE spraying bullets, unless we have our own North Hollywood shootout I do not see that happening. That AR was probably topped with an ACOG or Aimpoint and the officer assigned the weapon was trained to use it properly (just not trained to secure it properly).
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