Loomis man sentenced to nearly 6 years in prison for crashing into gun store, stealing guns

A Loomis man was sentenced to nearly six years in prison Thursday for ramming a pickup truck into the wall of a gun store and making off with several stolen firearms, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

Aaron Lee Patrick, 30, pleaded guilty to theft of a firearm from a licensed dealer and being a felon in possession of a firearm in October 2018. He was sentenced to five years and 11 month in prison by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley.

Last year, Patrick stole his employer’s flatbed truck and used it to ram the walls of a Loomis gun store, according to the release. The gun store reported stolen an AR rifle and 12-gauge shotgun among other items, according to Bee archives.

Patrick stole five firearms and went to the home of Rocky Gordon of Colfax and sold four of the guns for $1,000 and at least 35 grams of methamphetamine.

Patrick was arrested after a Placer County sheriff’s deputy parked on Barton Road heard gunshots and muzzle flashes coming from a car that Patrick was driving. During a vehicle pursuit, a tire blew out on Patrick’s car and he hit the median. Patrick tried to flee the car, but the deputy stopped him and took him into custody.

Patrick had a previous criminal record in Amador and Placer counties, where he had been convicted of burglary and illegally possessing an assault weapon. At the time of his arrest, he had a no-bail warrant because he had removed his ankle monitor while in a court-mandated community supervision program.

His co-defendant, Gordon, 63, pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

This story was originally published November 8, 2019 at 12:59 PM.