Posted on 03/10/2009 9:37:08 PM PDT by MyTwoCopperCoins
LITTLE ROCK — A federal magistrate ordered a Pope County physician arrested last week on a weapons charge to remain in custody pending his trial.
U.S. Magistrate H. David Young said he was concerned Dr. Randeep Singh Mann might flee the country if released.
Mann, 50, was arrested March 4 after federal agents searched his home after a cache of unregistered, high-explosive grenades was found in the vicinity. Four unregistered firearms were found in his home in London, near Russellville. Mann was charged with illegal possession of the grenades with possible further charges pending over the unregistered guns, a federal agent testified at a detention hearing that began Monday.
Young ordered Mann held without bond Tuesday after hearing testimony over two days.
In the search of Mann’s home, federal agents found 110 fully automatic machine guns worth more than $1 million. They searched the house after public works employees for the city of London found 98 grenades buried about 875 feet from Mann’s house.
The grenades are designed for firing from military rifles equipped with launchers, and Mann legally owns two of the launchers. However, possession of the high-explosive rounds is illegal. Owning inert practice grenades is not. Searchers also found an estimated 500,000 rounds of small arms ammunition, authorities said.
Numerous pistols and semi-automatic weapons were found throughout the house, according to testimony. ATFE agent David Oliver said Mann was legally licensed to buy and sell fully automatic weapons. At least four of the automatic weapons were not registered with federal authorities in Mann’s name, as federal law requires, Oliver said.
Agents also found $48,000 in cash at his home and witnesses said Mann made about 60 trips in and out of the country over a two-year period. Defense attorneys disputed testimony that Mann’s father, Kuldip Mann, is an international arms dealer. Authorities said the elder Mann has made hundreds of trips across the U.S. border within the past two years.
“I believe that there is a preponderance of evidence that I can’t trust you to follow the rules of any bond,” Young told Mann at the end of the hearing Tuesday.
“I don’t think I have an accurate picture of your financial where-with-all, and you also have contacts outside the country that would make it much easier than for another individual for you to flee the country,” the magistrate said.
No date was been set for Mann’s trial.
Mann is an internal medicine specialist who practiced at a Russellville clinic. He has been brought before the state Medical Board twice, most recently in 2006 for writing prescriptions to patients with drug abuse problems.
The mother of one of those patients who died after receiving prescriptions from Mann came to the hearing Monday.
“I just came to see him in shackles,” said Theresa Harris, mother of patient Ellie Harris.
Mann surrendered his permit to write prescriptions for many controlled substances rather than risk loss of his medical license at that 2006 hearing. He wrote to the state Medical Board in 2008 saying he was unable to work for hospitals or be paid by private insurance companies without the permit, hindering his ability to continue his practice in internal medicine, according to testimony Monday.
Authorities said Mann, an internal medicine specialist, has a permit from the federal government to sell registered machine guns. Agents testified that Mann had 110 machine guns, but at least four were not federally registered in his name, as is required under the National Firearms Act.
They also said he kept weapons around the house, including loaded pistols in the bedroom and machine guns on the floor and in closets and safes.
"If you were shot with it, the round would cut you in half," said David Oliver, a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, of a tripod-mounted sniper rifle found in Mann's house.
Details are paramount of course, but it seems they may have found a live one this time.
hmmmmmmmmmmm...I definitely will be looking for more information about this case as time goes on.
If I were on the jury, and the charge was limited to possesion of the weapons, then as a strong advocate of a (truly, non-commie) liberal interpretation of COTUS 2A, I would find it necessary to vote to acquit.
“The right of [Dr. Randeep Singh Mann] to keep...arms, shall not be infringed.”
I have heard that the good doctors father is an international arms dealer.
“Authorities said Mann, an internal medicine specialist, has a permit from the federal government to sell registered machine guns. Agents testified that Mann had 110 machine guns, but at least four were not federally registered in his name, as is required under the National Firearms Act.”
so he has a class 3 license, but of 110 nfa guns, 4 were not in his name? This means 106 apparently were, tax stamp and all?
His actual problem is the grenades, it seems (aside from the 4 guns above, if this isn’t a clerical issue.)
keeping loaded guns around the house isn’t odd at all in arkansas or the south in general. A gun for every room is not unheard of. I don’t see the point of that besides character assassination. ditto the batfe comment.
“... found 98 grenades buried about 875 feet from Mann’s house.”
875’ is much to far to have to run to fetch a grenade.
Guess he didn’t read “ The Art of the Cache .”
... or Use Jury Nullification (http://www.caught.net/juror.htm#nullification) and get rid of the offending law
Isn’t Russelville the site of a nuke plant?
I believe we said the same things in different terms.
Cheers.
I'm guessing it was not a tripod but rather a bipod.
Either way, having 110 "assault rifles" is totally cool.
No actually it would be two separate outcomes "Acquitting" lets finds the person "Not Guilty"...
...Jury Nullification is where the jury finds not only the individual "Innocent", but also finds the law unconstitutional and thereby Nullifies the law.
I stumbled upon it a couple of years ago (http://www.caught.net/juror.htm#nullification) anyone around FR know of any good sources of information on this?
Should be...”Acquitting” finds the person “Not Guilty”...
How is this news? Or a crime?
Oh yeah... BATFE SA Oliver is a completely clueless tool.
It’s also completely off his property. I smell “set-up”.
Excellent info, thanks!
Yes it is. Arkansas Nuclear One - Units 1 & 2
For the moment, I’ll take your word for it.
I thought Jury Nullification meant “yes, we believe he did exactly what you say he did...but we’re going to find him not guilty anyway...so that there’s a precedent, and it will be difficult if not impossible to get a guilty verdict out of a similar set of facts in the future.”
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