3 arrested after tunneling into California store to steal $40K in guns, sheriff says

Three men, suspected of stealing 73 guns by tunneling through a Newcastle store last month, were arrested in the Bay Area on Tuesday by the Placer County Sheriff’s Office.

The owners of Foothill Firearms were alerted about 4 a.m. July 22 of their security alarms ringing in the store, Jaimie Kuntz, a co-owner of Foothill Firearms, previously told The Sacramento Bee. Surveillance video caught one person cutting through the store’s wall and loading up duffel bags with handguns for about three hours, deputies said.

A 39-year-old San Rafael man is suspected of cutting a hole inside Foothill Farms. When he was arrested, deputies said he had two guns from the store, cutting tools and “specific items” from Foothill Firearms that “tied his involvement to the burglary.”

He has a long history of also cutting holes in other businesses to steal items, deputies said.

The alleged getaway driver, a 41-year-old Vallejo man, was also arrested and had a “specific item,” which tied his involvement to the burglary, deputies said. He’s a Norteno gang member with prior felony convictions for possessing weapons, drugs, stolen items and vehicle theft, deputies said.

Another Vallejo man lived with the alleged getaway driver at the time of his arrest. Deputies said he had a gun that belonged to Foothill Firearms. The 57-year-old also has a prior felony convictions for vehicle theft and for escaping from jail.

The San Rafael man is being held without bail and faces charges of burglary.

The 41-year-old Vallejo man is being held in lieu of $100,000 and faces charges of grand theft of a firearm, burglary, conspiracy to commit crimes, possessing ammunition and for having a firearm as a felon. He also has several warrants stemming from incidents in Solano County.

The 57-year-old Vallejo man is being held in lieu of $435,000 and faces charges for having a firearm as a felon and and receiving stolen property.