Burglars steal more than 30 guns from west Harris County pawn shop during power outage

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- ABC13 has learned thieves snatched more than 30 guns from a powerless pawn shop, taking advantage of the business impacted by the storm.

According to a source, the suspects are believed to have gone through the ceiling of the shop and mainly stole handguns, which are now on the streets and in the hands of criminals.

According to the Harris County Sheriff's Office, two employees went to check on the EZ Pawn shop at 4702 Highway 6 after the storms on Saturday morning and realized they were burglarized.

Due to the power outage, the store's surveillance cameras were not working, leaving officials with no description of the thieves.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is leading the investigation.

"Stolen firearms in Houston are a significant problem, whether they are stolen from a gun store or a person with a house or vehicle," Noel Rangers, ATF Houston assistant special agent in charge, said.

Within the city, the Houston Police Department said burglaries have increased at night since the natural disaster. Officers said people have been charged with felonies for burglarizing businesses during the outages.

"We have the ability to send messages to licensed gun dealers that it is critical to properly store their firearms prior to any natural disaster, especially when losing power becomes critical because a lot of their security cameras are hooked up to power," Rangers said.

According to Rangers, it is difficult for them to track stolen firearms used in crimes, which is why gun owners need to know their serial numbers.

"Often times these firearms, there are several makes and models that they are vastly produced and if a gun owner doesn't record the serial number when it's recovered in a crime, we aren't able to determine where that firearm came from," Rangers said.

Possessing a stolen firearm is a federal crime that can result in up to 10 years in prison.

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