Rifles, shotguns stolen during overnight gun shop burglary in Hutto
The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office says that on Tuesday, Oct. 17, at approximately 4:20 a.m., deputies were dispatched to an alarm activation at the Blackland Gun Works in Hutto.
When the officers arrived to the scene, they found the front window broken. According to deputies, approximately 10 to 15 shotguns and rifles were stolen.
The authorities say that surveillance video shows six suspects wearing masks and gloves forcing entering into the building.
It takes the burglars just seconds from breaking the window, to leaving with long guns in hand. "We believe it was an organized group of people, who knew what they were doing. They knew where the weapons were at," said Williamson County Sheriff Robert Chody.
Deputies say they found a stolen 2016 red Chevrolet truck half a mile away from the gun store on FM 3349, still running, with the driver’s side door open.
Chody says it's especially concerning. "As a law enforcement officer, it concerns me that they just have weapons out there that we don't know where they are or what criminal element has them now."
The same gun shop was burglarized last month when two suspects forced their way inside and broke into a Glock gun case, stealing an undisclosed amount of merchandise, including pistols.
Someone tried to break in to another gun shop Tuesday morning. "Georgetown PD had an attempted one the same night at a gun store," Chody said.
Now, as the WilCo Sheriff's Office investigates this latest break-in in Hutto, the sheriff has a message for gun shop owners. "You need to pay particular attention to your store and take those measures to protect because we have people trying to get them," he said.
A $5,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Anyone with any information about the burglaries should contact the ATF at 888-ATF-TIPS, or the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office at 512-864-8302.
