Description
The owner of a California store that sells gun parts to build rifles from scratch is refusing to turn over his customer list to federal officials.
Dimitrios Karras, owner of Ares Armor in Oceanside, told Fox5SanDiego.com that Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents are investigating his business because it sells AR-15 lower receivers, which contain the gun's operating parts.
The company sold thousands of 80 percent receivers in with colors showing where the customer can drill, making it easier and cheaper to build. The ATF said the sales are illegal and demanded the company turn over the products and names of customers who purchased them, according to the report.
“They said either give us these 5,000 names or we are coming in and taking pretty much anything – which is a huge privacy concern and something we are not willing to do,” Karras told the station.
Karras’s attorney arranged for ATF agents to pick up the receivers on Wednesday, but Karras said he will not comply with turning over the customer list.
"They were going to search all of our facilities and confiscate our computer and pretty much shut our business down,” Karras said. “The government invades our privacy on a daily basis and everyone thinks its ok."
"This is one of those situations where hopefully the governmental institutions will come in say this is protected and no you’re not taking it from them."
Anticipating a possible raid, the company filed a temporary restraining order against the ATF in an effort to prevent them stopping them from confiscating their property, Karras told the station.
Agency officials confirmed their investigation to Fox5SanDiego.com, but declined to comment further.
Ares Armor and the ATF will proceed to a preliminary hearing on the injunction if a compromise is not reached before March 20.
Comments (13)
I need an opinion! Should I contact my credit card company and cancel my order for the harpe upper! I dont know now if I will ever see it!
Ares Had a post in it's email update of this that had a court order that specifically said that nothing of theirs should be seized until after a preliminary hearing. They had a scan of the actual document. What changed here? I thought they bought the 80% lowers from EP Armory and just resold them. Is Ares the parent company of EP? Is my house next since I bought some of these around Black Friday? Where is this all over the national news?
Incident revolves around their manufacturing process. This company makes poly 80% lowers that have red where you need to mill out the trigger pocket and screw holes. ATF assumed they were making a lower then filling it with red poly. Thus making a lower without a manufacturers license. However Ares told them that they make the red mold first then mold around it. I would assume they would need some sort of evidence that the guns were made incorrectly. They did state that the ATF got a warrant based on the incorrect process.
Damn I just paid for a harpe upper! I sure hope I get it!
They should press charges against the ATF. We have the unalienable right to keep and bear arms. This is an infringement. That law was passed by popular vote of the people. No power of government can challenge that. That is in the constitution too. At least if they press charges they can show how bullshit this system is. Its called preservation of error in legal circles.
I know I don't have to tell most of you but inform your liberal friends. Vote the Constitution.
Too bad they were raided today despite the restraining order, took their computers with lists of customers anyways.
Above the law...
How do you know this to be true? Wouldn't somebody just call the news a so everyone would know "this is what really" happened?
we know its true because they posted video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gsmlJSpWvk...
ATF = Assholes Terrorizing Freedom