1767 guns "missing" - Oh no, they're probably out driving around shooting people now! I've read how these rougue guns act once the BATF no longer has any idea where they are. The horror, the horror...
Top Northern California gun dealer may close
(04-03) 13:15 PDT SAN LEANDRO -- Trader Sports, one of the largest firearms dealers in Northern California, could be shut down June 1 because the San Leandro business cannot account for nearly 2,000 guns it has sold, federal officials said.
In documents filed with the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says that store owner Tony Cucchiara violated federal law by failing to properly document the acquisition and sale of 1,767 weapons. Cucchiara blames the problem on clerical errors made by store employees.
The government doesn't buy that explanation and is scheduled to revoke Cucchiara's federal firearms license June 1. Cucchiara, who has owned Trader Sports since 1958, plans to appeal, saying the ATF is harassing him, according to the documents.
ATF officials said a company inventory conducted in September of 2003 found 3,659 firearms on the premises -- but the store's acquisition and disposition records showed it was supposed to have 9,100 firearms in its inventory.
Cucchiara and ATF inspectors tried to "reconcile the discrepancy between the inventory and the records" and learned that an additional 2,036 weapons couldn't be accounted for -- bringing the total of missing firearms to 7,477.
As of December, when the ATF issued its final notice of revocation, 1,767 firearms remained unaccounted for or missing, ATF officials said. It was not immediately clear how the other 5,710 weapons were accounted for.
Calls to Cucchiara and his attorney were not immediately returned today.
This is not the first time Cucchiara has run into trouble with the ATF.
In 2003, Trader Sports "was unfairly and unjustifiably targeted for an unprecedented and illegal inspection and audit of its records which went well beyond the pale of any legitimate or reasonable annual 'compliance' inspection," the company said in a lawsuit filed in February against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and ATF officials.
But the ATF said in court documents that Trader Sports, located at 685 East 14th St., violated federal law that mandates the tracking of weapon inventory and sales. The agency, which issued its notice of revocation in July 2004, rejected claims by Cucchiara that his employees "had inadvertently erred during clerical data entry by making typographical errors."
Cucchiara's feud with the ATF dates back decades.
After the ATF denied his license-renewal application in 1978, he sued, saying the agency had violated his civil rights. He agreed to dismiss the suit in 1983 in exchange for the ATF restoring his license.
Cucchiara also claimed in the suit he filed this year that the ATF agreed years ago that he would not be unnecessarily singled out for inspections. The ATF countered that Cucchiara "failed to demonstrate that the government was aware of any purported agreement."
Trader Sport's lawsuit said previous inspections involved only one or two ATF officials. But the 2003 inspection involved 15 personnel and violated the ATF's protocol because it came less than a year after its last inspection of the business and its records, according to Cucchiara.
"They turned the business upside down, demanding to examine records dating back as far as 1967 under the pretense of an annual 'compliance' inspection," the suit said.
Without a license, Trader Sports would have to refund money to customers awaiting shipment of their guns, the suit said. Those customers also would have to have new background checks and undergo another "waiting period" with another dealer, the suit said.
If it shuts down, the gun store "will suffer the permanent destruction of its business, loss of prospective customers and goodwill and irreparable injury to its reputation within the community," the suit said.
E-mail Henry K. Lee at hlee@sfchronicle.com.
Top Northern California gun dealer may close
(04-03) 13:15 PDT SAN LEANDRO -- Trader Sports, one of the largest firearms dealers in Northern California, could be shut down June 1 because the San Leandro business cannot account for nearly 2,000 guns it has sold, federal officials said.
In documents filed with the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says that store owner Tony Cucchiara violated federal law by failing to properly document the acquisition and sale of 1,767 weapons. Cucchiara blames the problem on clerical errors made by store employees.
The government doesn't buy that explanation and is scheduled to revoke Cucchiara's federal firearms license June 1. Cucchiara, who has owned Trader Sports since 1958, plans to appeal, saying the ATF is harassing him, according to the documents.
ATF officials said a company inventory conducted in September of 2003 found 3,659 firearms on the premises -- but the store's acquisition and disposition records showed it was supposed to have 9,100 firearms in its inventory.
Cucchiara and ATF inspectors tried to "reconcile the discrepancy between the inventory and the records" and learned that an additional 2,036 weapons couldn't be accounted for -- bringing the total of missing firearms to 7,477.
As of December, when the ATF issued its final notice of revocation, 1,767 firearms remained unaccounted for or missing, ATF officials said. It was not immediately clear how the other 5,710 weapons were accounted for.
Calls to Cucchiara and his attorney were not immediately returned today.
This is not the first time Cucchiara has run into trouble with the ATF.
In 2003, Trader Sports "was unfairly and unjustifiably targeted for an unprecedented and illegal inspection and audit of its records which went well beyond the pale of any legitimate or reasonable annual 'compliance' inspection," the company said in a lawsuit filed in February against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and ATF officials.
But the ATF said in court documents that Trader Sports, located at 685 East 14th St., violated federal law that mandates the tracking of weapon inventory and sales. The agency, which issued its notice of revocation in July 2004, rejected claims by Cucchiara that his employees "had inadvertently erred during clerical data entry by making typographical errors."
Cucchiara's feud with the ATF dates back decades.
After the ATF denied his license-renewal application in 1978, he sued, saying the agency had violated his civil rights. He agreed to dismiss the suit in 1983 in exchange for the ATF restoring his license.
Cucchiara also claimed in the suit he filed this year that the ATF agreed years ago that he would not be unnecessarily singled out for inspections. The ATF countered that Cucchiara "failed to demonstrate that the government was aware of any purported agreement."
Trader Sport's lawsuit said previous inspections involved only one or two ATF officials. But the 2003 inspection involved 15 personnel and violated the ATF's protocol because it came less than a year after its last inspection of the business and its records, according to Cucchiara.
"They turned the business upside down, demanding to examine records dating back as far as 1967 under the pretense of an annual 'compliance' inspection," the suit said.
Without a license, Trader Sports would have to refund money to customers awaiting shipment of their guns, the suit said. Those customers also would have to have new background checks and undergo another "waiting period" with another dealer, the suit said.
If it shuts down, the gun store "will suffer the permanent destruction of its business, loss of prospective customers and goodwill and irreparable injury to its reputation within the community," the suit said.
E-mail Henry K. Lee at hlee@sfchronicle.com.
