Source: United States Department of Justice News
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – Two Kansas men have been charged through criminal complaint in Kansas City, Kansas, on charges related to alleged firearms thefts. Deldrick Bryant, 19, of Kansas City, Kansas, and Benjamin Custis, 19, are charged with two counts of burglary of a licensed firearms dealer.
According to a criminal complaint, on October 16, 2022, the Basehor Police Department responded to a commercial burglary at Free State Gun Company. The business owners told officers an estimated 50 firearms were missing including rifle platforms, shotguns, and pistols.
Also according to the complaint, on October 17, 2022, the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office responded to a burglary at Up In Arms, a gun shop in De Soto. After reviewing their inventory, the owners estimated 25 pistols were taken.
Surveillance videos from both scenes show a white Ford pickup was used to breach the businesses by ramming the front doors. On October 18, the pickup truck was spotted in Kansas City, Kansas and investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) began tailing the vehicle. When law enforcement officers attempted to make contact, the driver hit a parked car and fled into Kansas City, Missouri where the Kansas City, Missouri police officers were able to apprehend the occupants in the vehicle. Several firearms reported stolen from the businesses were recovered inside the pickup.
ATF agents searched the home where Bryant resides and recovered more stolen weapons.
The Basehor Police Department, Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) and the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney David Zabel is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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