Los Angeles train rail yard thefts robberies guns
Cardboard and other discarded items lay on the ground at a Union Pacific railroad site on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2022, in Los Angeles. Thieves have been raiding cargo containers aboard trains nearing downtown Los Angeles for months, taking packages belonging to people across the U.S. and leaving the tracks blanketed with discarded boxes. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Previous Post
Next Post

“I’ve got 24 years in LAPD, ex-military, secret clearance and I have to wait 10 days to get a new firearm and these guys are going into these containers with no locks and getting guns,” said Capt. German Hurtado, who oversees the LAPD’s Hollenbeck Division, where the rail yards are located. “These guns were unguarded, unprotected… God knows how many guns have been stolen that way.”

Only a handful of the 82 guns known to have been stolen from trains passing through the Eastside neighborhood have been recovered. Investigators are not yet sure how many other weapons may have been pilfered, Hurtado said.

A gang in L.A.’s Eastside orchestrated the thefts, according to LAPD detectives. Feuding over who would profit from the stolen weaponry taken from the Union Pacific train yards appears to have been behind the killing of a person involved in the thefts, according to multiple law enforcement sources who were not authorized to speak publicly.

The realization that so many guns had been taken from trains — and the possibility that many more may have been stolen too — was chilling, Hurtado said.

“This is bigger than we thought. They aren’t just stealing shoes and stuff. This is an organized crime to the level they are stealing guns,” he said.

— Richard Winton and Rachel Uranga in Scores of guns stolen from trains cause more problems in L.A.

Previous Post
Next Post

35 COMMENTS

  1. But the narrative will still be “guns are coming in from 2A states and gunshow loopholes”! Wanna bet?

    • Stealing a firearm is a felony in Iowa, you’d think it would be a double super felony in California. If they catch the peeps they’ll be out in 2 hours on $50 bail and the DA will let them plead down to disorderly conduct.

      • Because of the way the law was written in California. The accused can force a district attorney. To give them the misdemeanor charge, instead of a felony. This is simply the unintended consequences of making it easier to deal drugs, and use drugs in the state of California. Or perhaps this WAS THE INTENDED CONSEQUENCES of the drug legalization crowd?

        Because they are the ones responsible for drafting proposition 47 in the first place.

      • stealing a firearm is a federal level felony as well as one in neary every state, probably all of them.
        WHY are not the Feds being brought in to stop this> Theft of goods stolen from a public “conveyance” (trains, buses, trucks, etc) in INTERSTATE COMMERCE is a federal felony.

        I have NEVER seen a truck trailer or a can with NO LOCK that is in transit. They are alwsys LOCKED and carry a numbered seal, which mtches that of the Bil of Lading. My bet is that the thieves board the still moving cars and clip the locks and seals long before the actual thefts occur. Thos cans are locked and sealed when the train starts moving out of the consolidatioin yard.

  2. Do they not have railroad cops anymore?

    Bet this wouldn’t have happened if Shack had been on the job. Nobody rides on (or steals from) No. 19…

    • The railroad cops are busy giving tickets in Texas. Some years ago I saw one pulling people over on a highway no where near railroads. I assume it was for speeding after the guy passed the railroad cop on the highway.

    • There are railyard cops who work for the rail companies, but I don’t know if anyone actually rides the rails as law enforcement. It doesn’t really matter anyway, because they wouldn’t be allowed to do anything to stop the thefts, and no one would be prosecuted if they were caught.

  3. But But But…. all the criminals get their guns from out of state don’t they, smuggled into the state by some nefarious characters and then (according to dacian) purchased at flea markets and in the backs of bars? Surely there is no way possible that a gang can possibly steal legitimate products like guns being moved legitimately by rail with the rail ways having their own dedicated police force.

  4. May as well repeal CA gun laws now since the whole “it’ll be the wild west!” hyperbole would be redundant what with train robberies and all.

    Urban fashion has been effectively stagnant for 20+ years. I look forward to the adoption of bolo ties and Stetson hats among the train robbery set.

  5. The “…………….This is an organized crime to the level they are stealing guns,”…….”. 🤔
    That statement is a total failure in root cause identification.

    The root cause is the open border policies and the failed “leadership”/criminal justice system of California. These have allowed crime to get to the current levels.

    The root cause isn’t the gangs being too good, the root cause is poor decisions by leaders, lack of oversight, and a judicial system that sucks.

    Misidentification of root cause just allows poor leadership (progtards) to throw more money at things (effects) that WON’T fix the problems (causes).

    • What is the ‘root cause’ of you being a cowardly pretend patriot who avoided military service like exercise and who would be reduced to a useless quivering mess in a firefight?

      • Be careful ATO. After all one of JC’s sons bravely drew down on a couple Jehovah’s Witnesses he mistakenly identified as threats.

        Like father, like son lol 🖕🤡.

      • Hey, nameless, brainless troll!!! “A True Operator”?????? It is to laugh. Boy, the only thing you’ve got in your hand is your d***, and you can’t even shoot with that.

        Go visit the cable.

        • Now that both Lamp the woman abuser and JC have weighed in, I’m hopeful we will hear from someone who * isn’t * an intellectually deficient dunderpate.

        • Don’t bother responding LOD.
          I’ve proven the shape shifting TTAG troll 🤡s wrong every instance they’ve called BS in the last three years. I’m done responding.

          Let’s take a stroll down memory lane lil’d basement dwelling chimp 🤡s, shall we?

          Christmas 2019, you claimed I didn’t purchase a Steyr AUG for my older son.
          I actually provided the GB item listing # and purchase details. Gave the name of his FFL that did the federally required steps to transfer the AUG to my son. Remember? I remember. 🤔

          You claimed it’s not possible for a US citizen to purchase and import guns from Europe legally.
          I provided the details of my importer (Simpson LTD) and the person who I use as a contact there (Nice P.), and explained the process to a TTAG poster. Then I EVEN provided a link to Walther Forum showing dozens of UBER rare and classic European handguns, several importer by me. Stuff like P5 Lang’s (only a few dozen ever produced). Linked another WF thread where hardcore members/collectors stated I was probably the most active personal firearm collector in NA in the 2018 calendar year.
          Other links showing Pardini GT9 6″, Bernardelli Practical VB, several HK P7s, almost a dozen Walther P5s (most still new), a spotless low ser# 1900 DWM Am Eagle Luger, Patriot Ord Fact P308 SPR Gen4 EDGE in Robar NP3 finish, and so forth.
          The basement dwellers called it “humble brag”, I called it stomping little hairless troll nutsacks who call gun owners liars.
          Remember? I remember. 🤔

          The TTAG troll farm 🤡s are like the retarded kid on the Pee-wee football team who picks up the ball and runs for a touchdown after the game is over and everyone else is walking off the field.
          Hey troll 🤡s, GFY 🖕. The game is over, you’re too stupid to recognize that fact. 🤪
          Now take your pathetic self upstairs for a hug from mommy🦍……… and your participation trophy.
          Make sure you strap your helmet on before getting up off the computer chair, those stairs are super dangerous.

        • ‘dOn’T BoThEr ReSpOnDiNg’, and then write a multiple paragraph nonsensical response. And you wonder why your wife left you lol.

        • THAT’S your response, nameless, brainless troll???

          Wow, that’s pathetic. Dude, you obviously get turned down by Rosie. You are a pathetic troll, lacking wit, intellect, skill, education, or value. A man with any pride, possessed of your meager-to-nonextistent ‘gifts’, would not put himself in the public eye to be mocked for his inadequacies . . . you you are neither a man, nor possessed of pride, so I guess you’ll just continue to “comment” on this board, and make an @$$ of yourself.

          You are too stupid to insult.

        • “Your Better
          January 30, 2022 At 11:28
          ‘dOn’T BoThEr ReSpOnDiNg’, and then write a multiple paragraph nonsensical response. And you wonder why your wife left you lol”

          🤣🤣🤣
          Keep running that ball into the end zone after the final whistle you 🖕ing retard. 🤣

          I had the police kick my ex-wife to the curb of the marital home over a decade ago, she went to live in an investment property on a DIRT ROAD that we owned . The marital home was 5k sq/ft, 5 bedroom, 5 bathroom, 4 car garage home SHE chose to have built. 🤣🤣
          Purchased a BMW X5 shortly afterwards, a car SHE wanted me to buy for her. 🤣🤣

          Word is she’s filing for her 3rd bankruptcy now. 🤣🤣

          Like LOD said, too stupid. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

          You may want to stop eating all those lead paint chips in that basement 🤡!

  6. Taking bets on the over/under on LAPD bringing back SIS…

    Related: would staking out the train yards run afowl of the “no hunting over bait” rule?

  7. Like Gavin Newsom said, it looks like a third world country. Who’s in charge there anyway? What a stupid son of a bitch.

  8. The leftward, communist, criminal element that governs California and its major cities is the root cause of these crimes. An organization molds itself to the behaviors of the leadership.

    There is no fixing of California’s societal ills until free and fair elections are restored or until Patriots rise and take back the state and its cities. I am not sure how this can happen but maybe the Sherriffs and local LEOs need to organize against unconstitutional orders and to police the elections.

  9. So now criminals can steal the nice expensive guns!!! And it’s no big deal. The original misdemeanor was $450. So now stealing a Sig or FN or Ruger is really no big deal. At the new $950 misdemeanor, this gets you a really good higher end gun.

    SCCY, Hi Points, Taurus, and Heritage, need not apply. Now they can steal the good stuff.

  10. Hven’t checked for a few years but when I irst started carrying personal protection I checked. California law allowed the presentation and/or use of lethal force to protect PROPERTY. I ws surprised but verified in a few sources. It may have changed since then.

    If it has NOT changed since I checked, then LE or provate secutiry MAY present and employ lethal force to protect property.

    I mantain that after the first three thieving dirtbags get veiltaled, the whole train theft scene will disappear ain about fifteen minutes. Criminals are opportunists. It does not profit them to do anytning that means they are not able to contnue their “work” Pushinc up daisies rather tends to minimise profit from stealing “stuff”. When the train raiiders begin to sow up at the local orgue, having lost the room temperature challnge, the “bush telegraph” will quickly get the word out. The thieving will end. Quickly. I say no more than three dirtbags meeting Mr. Justice at 900 fps will be the end of it.

    I know that back when, the Pinkertons went about their duties armed, and were utterly unafraid to use any means they have ready to hand.

  11. It is still technically illegal to steal in California. But you can get away with it. And the authorities will allow you to get away with it.

    And Possessing marijuana is still technically illegal in California. But that law is now not often enforced. And the authorities will allow you to get away with that too. And crime has still not gone away.

    The Libertarians liberals and the Left have created a utopia in the California. That will eventually destroy that Society. Because they destroyed the concept of private property rights.

    The number one priority of the Three L’s has always been drug legalization. At any cost. Including the cost of the second Amendment and every other civil right being lost.

Comments are closed.