Edmonton police are searching for suspects after six deactivated machine guns were stolen from a local army surplus and hunting gear store.
SEBARMS owner Jim Osadczuk said he received a call from his alarm company early Saturday morning, telling him someone had broken in. He figures the thieves smashed glass cases and stole the deactivated weapons because they could not access the store’s more secure inventory of functional guns.
One of the stolen weapons, a MAG 58 machine gun, is worth an estimated $14,000.
“The gun is actually worth more deactivated than it is live,” Osadczuk told CTV Edmonton on Monday.
He estimates about $45,000 worth of merchandise was taken in total.
The rare MAG 58 could be the only collector piece of its kind in Canada. The weapons are valuable due to Canada’s strict gun laws.
“If I had one of these that work, I can’t sell it to you,” Osadczuk said. “It has to be deactivated before it gets sold.”
The thieves are also reported to have stolen more than a dozen pairs of military surplus pants.
Osadczuk’s security cameras did not capture the thieves entering the building, just video of the Edmonton Police Service tactical team responding to the call.
Police said they have not identified any suspects at this time. They are, however, relieved the stolen guns cannot be fired.
“The firearms are decommissioned. That means they’re inoperable,” said Edmonton Police Service spokesperson Cheryl Sheppard. “This process cannot be reversed, so they wouldn’t be able to shoot any kind of bullet.”
With a report from CTV Edmonton’s David Ewasuk
