Posted on 05/26/2010 6:08:29 PM PDT by NavyCanDo
SEATTLE -- There are more questions than answers in the case of a suspected international arms dealer caught in Washington state with a stockpile of sniper rifles.
Oliver King is an Iranian citizen who, in the past, has been a licensed gun dealer. King appeared in court in Seattle on Wednesday, accused of keeping a stash of guns and ammunition hidden in a storage unit near the U.S.-Canada border.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, King lied to enter the U.S. near Blaine last week. Agents with U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement became suspicious of King when he showed up at the border with a brand new passport, and a story about picking up his wife at Bellis Fair Shopping Mall in Bellingham.
Upon searching his car, agents found King's original passport, which has three visas for Iran and lists King's name as Hamid Malekpour.
At King's storage locker in Ferndale, agents found $30,000 worth of police-grade sniper rifles, handguns and ammunition.
(Excerpt) Read more at komonews.com ...
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/6420ap_wa_gun_dealer_charged.html
"Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents tailed King as he left the border crossing. He drove to McMinnville, Ore., where he went to a gun shop and loaded his car with four guns and 480 rounds of .50-caliber ammunition.
Agents say he then drove north to the Ferndale storage unit, where he had $30,000 worth of sniper rifles, handguns and ammo.
When asked about the weapons in his car, King said he was a hunter, according to the complaint."
Weird...
I imagine he’ll scream “racial profiling” and the judge will let the maggot go.
Another camel humping terrorist, I reckon.
Why does a member of the Religion of Peace need so many sniper rifles anyway?
I certainly hope the Feds confiscated the guns and ammo.
This guy is dirty:
Canadian gun dealer who obtained weapons in McMinnville arrested after feds find ammo
By The Associated Press
May 20, 2010, 7:47PM US Federal agents have arrested a Canadian gun dealer who kept a stash of sniper rifles and ammunition at a Washington storage unit near the U.S. northern border.
The man had recently picked up four weapons and 480 rounds of .50-caliber ammunition from a gun shop in McMinnville.
Oliver King — who also uses his given name, Hamid Malekpour — was arrested Wednesday in Ferndale, which is about 10 miles south of the Canadian border.
He made an initial appearance today at U.S. District Court in Seattle on charges of making false statements to a government agency and being an alien in possession of firearms.
A hearing was set for next Wednesday to determine whether he should continue to be detained pending trial. According to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle, he entered the U.S. at Blaine the previous night and lied when he said he was going to pick up his wife at a Bellingham mall.
The Iranian native also lied about why he had a new Canadian passport just issued that morning, the complaint said. He told border guards that his old one had gone through the wash, but agents found it during a secondary inspection — with no water damage. The old one, which was not set to expire until 2013, had been canceled, but it was not immediately clear why.
It had three visas for Iran, two issued last year and one issued this year. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents tailed King as he left the border crossing. He drove to McMinnville, where he went to a gun shop and loaded his car with the guns and high-caliber ammunition. Agents say he then drove north to the Ferndale storage unit, where he had $30,000 worth of sniper rifles, handguns and ammo.
When asked about the weapons in his car, King said he was a hunter, according to the complaint.
Amir Zarandi, who owns McMinnville Hunting and Police Supplies, said King is a consultant and has bought weapons there for years. Zarandi said King also manufactures ammunition, is well known in the business and “doesn’t do anything illegal.” “He’s a good person,” Zarandi said. “I’m sure this is just a technicality sort of thing.”
According to the complaint, King was a licensed firearms dealer in Canada under his other name. The license was temporarily suspended when the Canadian government discovered he was selling guns over the Internet, but apparently the license has been “recovered” and may be valid.
Are police-grade sniper rifles more deadly than assault weapons or High-powered rifles?
Dirtier and dirtier:
The crack ATF didn’t know gun store existed!!!!
“MCMINNVILLE, Ore. - Federal agents say an Iranian citizen lied to get across the U.S.-Canadian border and then stashed weapons near the border after transporting them from McMinnville, according to a court document.
Agents said last Tuesday night Oliver King crossed the border on a false passport telling customs he had to “pick up his wife at the Target store.” But agents followed him down Interstate 5 to McMinnville, watched him pull up to an office building he leases which is a gun shop, load up boxes and drive back to Ferndale, Wash.
There in a storage unit, agents said they found a stash of $30,000 worth of law enforcement grade sniper rifles, handguns and ammunition. And on the boxes were shipping labels to “McMinnville, Oregon”.
Salem resident David Cross - not the ATF or customs agents - alerted various local police agencies after he saw an Associated Press story about the arrest of King.
“It troubled me in a post 9/11 world that a Canadian national could buy guns in McMinnville, Ore., and I looked at this and said, ‘uh oh, I wonder if our local state and county law enforcement officials have been contacted about this,” Cross said.
The local agencies said they didn’t know the McMinnville Hunting and Police Supplies gun shop existed.
The landlord said King signed a five-year lease last year but neighboring tenants have only seen a man twice, including last week.
A sign tacked onto a door says boxes are to be left down the hall with a real estate agent with Premier Northwest Real Estate. The real estate agent refused to comment.
Court records say King’s real name is Hamid Malekpour.
When confronted agents said King claimed to be a hunter but his guns and ammunition are not what a hunter would use.”
The court document says King claimed to have a hunting license from North Dakota but it was just an image of an expired one. He did get a Canadian hunting license the same morning along with his new passport.
He reportedly told agents his was damaged in the wash but agents said they found it and it was just fine.
King has three visas for Iran, two from last year, and another from six weeks ago.
The gun shop is owned by someone else who the AP identifies as Amir Zarandi. But the gun shop is not listed on state or ATF records.
The landlord said he knows nothing about him other than he might be a California associate.
The Seattle PI story:
SEATTLE — Federal agents said Thursday they have arrested a Canadian gun dealer who kept a stash of sniper rifles and ammunition at a Washington storage unit near the U.S. northern border.
Oliver King - who also uses his given name, Hamid Malekpour - was arrested Wednesday in Ferndale, which is about 10 miles south of the Canadian border. He made an initial appearance Thursday at U.S. District Court in Seattle on charges of making false statements to a government agency and being an alien in possession of firearms.
A hearing was set for next Wednesday to determine whether he should continue to be detained pending trial.
According to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle, he entered the U.S. at Blaine the previous night and lied when he said he was going to pick up his wife at a Bellingham mall.
The Iranian native also lied about why he had a new Canadian passport just issued that morning, the complaint said. He told border guards that his old one had gone through the wash, but agents found it during a secondary inspection - with no water damage.
The old one, which was not set to expire until 2013, had been canceled, but it was not immediately clear why. It had three visas for Iran, two issued last year and one issued this year.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents tailed King as he left the border crossing. He drove to McMinnville, Ore., where he went to a gun shop and loaded his car with four guns and 480 rounds of .50-caliber ammunition.
Agents say he then drove north to the Ferndale storage unit, where he had $30,000 worth of sniper rifles, handguns and ammo.
When asked about the weapons in his car, King said he was a hunter, according to the complaint.
Amir Zarandi, who owns the Oregon gun shop, McMinnville Hunting and Police Supplies, said King is a consultant and has bought weapons there for years.
Zarandi said King also manufactures ammunition, is well known in the business and “doesn’t do anything illegal.”
“He’s a good person,” Zarandi said. “I’m sure this is just a technicality sort of thing.”
According to the complaint, King was a licensed firearms dealer in Canada under his other name. The license was temporarily suspended when the Canadian government discovered he was selling guns over the Internet, but apparently the license has been “recovered” and may be valid.
It would be nice if “government agents” could be prosecuted for the same crime.
I'm not defending this probable dirt bag, but stockpiling guns and ammo is a hobby, not a crime.
Using a fake identity to purchase firearms is a felony though. I'm sure that since he's an illegal alien though, Obama will want to see the charges dropped.
The guy was a former gun dealer and current re-loader, which explains both the guns and ammo. Nothing he had was illegal. His old passport was canceled so he had a new one. There is no law requiring the destruction of an old passport if a new one is issued. He never attempted to cross the border with the firearm or ammunition. It's also not a crime to be an Iranian immigrant.
Unless he has committed some crime with the firearms they have no right to confiscate them and may have violated his rights pretty egregiously. I'll have to watch how this one plays out.
This is the kind of story that will be written about gun owners when the government starts collecting them from citizens. Those with the guns will be demonized and characterized as potential (or active) terrorists.
“Are police-grade sniper rifles more deadly than assault weapons or High-powered rifles?”
450 rounds of .50 Cal - I should say yes
Nice police work on the release and tail.
Exactly. Many predicted years ago the MSM would eventually brand anything with a scope was a “sniper” rifle............
Since when does quantity = lethality? 450 rounds is nothing. A reloader may do that many in a single sitting. I personally reload about 10x more ammo then I shoot because I enjoy reloading as much, if not slightly more than shooting. As a result I guess I have a “stockpile.”
There is no law limiting the amount of ammo or firearms a person may own.
It isn't a gun shop open to the public as far as I can tell. No one knew it existed.
maybe amir gives a homeboy discount.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.