Thieves smashed a stolen sedan into a Coweta County gun store early Sunday morning, knocking down the front wall and driving off with about $70,000 in rifles.
Rusty Morris, co-owner of The AR Bunker on Ga. 34, just outside the Newnan city limits, said surveillance video showed three men in hoodies backing into his store at about 4:50 Sunday morning, grabbing guns from racks and running off.
Their car, a Honda Accord, demolished the store’s exterior, caving in windows, doors and parts of the concrete wall, Morris said.
The men grabbed about 30 to 35 rifles, including AR-15s and other semi-automatic rifles, Morris said. While the battering-ram entry triggered alarms, the burglars were gone within 50 seconds, he said.
“The Newnan police responded first, and were here within 15 to 18 seconds after (the thieves) pulled out of the shop,” he said.
The Accord was recovered in a nearby industrial park. Morris said investigators assume the thieves made a wrong turn and found themselves at a dead-end, then ran through the woods to nearby I-85 carrying their stolen goods. A few abandoned guns were discovered in those woods, he said.
Morris was at the store within 20 minutes of the crime, and late Sunday morning was meeting with contractors to board up the missing doors and windows.
“Hopefully we’ll be open tomorrow,” he said.
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