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Thieves Target Another Gun Store, Take Off With 20 Rifles

By Tom Mustin

LITTLETON, Colo. (CBS4)- Police in Littleton and the Denver metro area, along with ATF agents, are looking for several brazen criminals who broke into a Littleton gun store early Wednesday. It's one of at least three gun stores targeted by thieves in the same area since May.

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The thieves broke into a motorcycle shop to gain access to the gun shop (credit: CBS)

Authorities say they don't know why Littleton has been such a popular target, but catching the crooks is a major concern.

Shattered glass and a gaping hole help tell the story of yet another gun store robbery in Littleton.

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Lisa Meiman with the ATF (credit: CBS)

"It's very alarming to us. This is our top priority at ATF," Lisa Meiman with the ATF told CBS4's Tom Mustin.

Early Wednesday morning, several people broke the window at the Grand Prix Motorsports shop on County Line Road.

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(credit: CBS)

The crooks raced upstairs to the Warhorse Firearms shop and stole as many as 20 rifles, before disappearing into the night.

"It's definitely getting closer and closer and having this hit right next door is very concerning," said Justin McGarvey.

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CBS4's Tom Mustin interviews Justin McGarvey (credit: CBS)

McGarvey owns the AutoTrek auto store located just feet from where the crime happened. Coincidently, his dog is named Bandit.

Like other shop owners, McGarvey is frustrated after a string of unsolved crimes, including a brazen robbery at the nearby Triple J Armory gun store in May.

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The smash & grab at the Triple J Armory in Littleton in May (credit: CBS)

"It's definitely getting hard to catch them it seems like, because no one has any tips, no one is throwing out any information. Not only that they're definitely staying pretty secretive," said McGarvey.

Meiman says agents are not ruling out a connection between this crime and the other gun store break-ins over the past few months. She also added that stolen weapons in the hands of criminals are a major concern.

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(credit: CBS)

"These are weapons that are going to be used in crimes. They're not going to be trophies or used for hunting," said Meiman. "They'll be used in crimes. They're extremely dangerous to the public and officer safety."

And with gun toting criminals still on the loose, McGarvey has a message for the busy crooks, "It sounds like you just keep doing this over and over again. Someone is going to be hurt or possibly killed, so just knock it off."

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(credit: CBS)

Right now, there is no suspect description, but the ATF is not ruling out a possible connection between this crime and several other recent break-ins.

Police are looking for a dark, two-door Honda with a black spoiler on the back.

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Copter4 flew over the building where the weapons were stolen. (credit: CBS)

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to arrest. Anyone with information is urged to call Littleton police, Crime Stoppers or the ATF at 1-800-ATF-Guns.

Tom Mustin is CBS4's Weekend Anchor. He has been with CBS4 since 2002, and is always looking for great story ideas. Connect with Tom on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @TomCBS4.

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