Burglars use U-Haul to ram through wall

Theft of firearms from sporting goods store captured on cameras.

Standing outside a massive hole in the side of his business, the manager of a Douglasville sporting goods store said Thursday he underestimated the security a concrete wall could provide.

Overnight, a crew used a U-haul and another box truck to ram their way inside Gable Sporting Goods on Fairburn Road, according to manager Rome Smith. Employees still were taking inventory, but Smith estimated about two dozen firearms were stolen in the heist, most of them handguns.

Smith said the thieves broke through the wall shortly after 1 a.m. It took them 58 seconds to grab the guns, scramble back over the debris and drive away, he said. The entire incident was captured on the store’s security cameras.

“They backed the U-haul truck through the side of the building, through the block wall, and then

pulled it back out,” Smith said. “About six guys run in, gather

the guns, put them in the other truck and leave.”

Gable, which has been operated by Smith’s family for generations, typically carries about 1,000 firearms, ammunition and other outdoor and sporting equipment. Smith assumes the men cased the business before carrying out their heist Thursday morning.

“It seems very specific on which counters they were targeting, so I definitely feel like they’ve been in here, looking at the place,” Smith said. “Because they knew exactly where to come in on the side of the building. It was just kind of the perfect storm.”

Douglasville police were investigating. According to police, the U-haul was recovered later Thursday in Atlanta, but authorities are still looking for the second white box truck.

Smith said he hopes investigators will be able to identify the suspects by looking at the store’s surveillance footage. He believes it’s only a matter of time before one of the stolen weapons winds up in a pawn shop.

“They will get these out on the street, and hopefully somebody will find them and give us a clue of who did this,” he said.

JOHN SPINK/JOHN.SPINK@AJC.COM N.B. Masonry workers on Thursday begin the process of replacing the wall of a Douglasville sporting goods store where burglars stole guns after using a U-haul truck to knock a hole in the building. Store manager Rome Smith said he assumes the crew cased the business.

JOHN SPINK/JOHN.SPINK@AJC.COM Manager Rome Smith works on a rifle in his store on Thursday, hours after burglars used a U-haul truck to knock a hole in the building. He estimated about two dozen firearms were stolen.