Hunting weapons and ammunition fell out of a SUV into a busy intersection, causing a scramble as drivers of other cars stopped to grab them. A handgun was left on a toilet paper holder in a store bathroom. And then there were the more commonplace thefts of firearms from cars.
It all begs the question: Can anyone hold onto their guns in Columbia anymore?
Police are investigating seven guns that went missing from their owners in the city through a variety of circumstances last week. Three of the weapons were recovered early Thursday.
Last Friday, three long guns, including one that had just been purchased, were lost in something that Columbia Police Department Detective Capt. Rita Pickering describes as a “freak accident.”
“A man who has some hunting property in the area was driving in an SUV and the lift gate came open,” she said. “Three weapons came out. The owner did not know it had not latched.”
The three guns lost from the SUV near the intersection of U.S. 98 and Mississippi 13 include a 300 Mag Blaser deer rifle with a scope, a 20-gauge Beretta youth auto shotgun and a 20-gauge Benelli youth auto shotgun.
“The Benelli had just been purchased,” Pickering said. “Witnesses said vehicles stopped and took the items. We don’t know who actually took the guns. There was a whole case of shotgun shells scattered in the highway. Everyone was stopping and grabbing them.”
The owner of the guns offered a $5,000 reward for their return. The weapons, as it turns out, were discovered along Mississippi 43 near the Marion-Pearl River County line.
In another incident, an FN57 handgun is missing after being left in a bathroom at the Columbia Walmart Supercenter on U.S. 98.
“On Nov. 22, a man entered Walmart and went to use the bathroom,” Pickering said. “He laid the pistol on the toilet paper rack and forgot it and walked out and left it. When he walked back in to get it, it wasn’t there.”
Pickering said anyone with information can contact the CPD at (601) 736-8204.
“We honestly don’t have any leads in helping these folks recover their weapons,” she said.
CPD is also investigating three separate auto burglaries on Nov. 25, including one where several guns were stolen.
“The vehicles were left unlocked,” Pickering said. “They occurred in three different areas of the city. In one of them, three guns were taken out of the vehicle. There was no forced entry in the vehicle, and the guns were in a bag.”
The burglaries occurred on East Rankin Street, Harriet Drive and Ridgewood Drive.
“It’s not a normal occurrence for them to be spread out,” Pickering said. “We can’t say if they’re related; the crimes are too sporadic. In the other vehicles, coins and cash were taken.”
The three guns taken from the vehicle were a .45-caliber Kimber pistol, a 9-mm Smith & Wesson pistol and a .38-special Smith & Wesson.
“People need to secure their guns and other items,” Pickering said. “Do not leave weapons in your car. Don’t leave vehicles unlocked and don’t leave anything in plain view this time of year. This is the season when people are looking in vehicles for items to steal. Anything you can do to deter thefts will help. If you can’t put items in the trunk cover them with a blanket and make sure your doors are locked.”
