“Police are treating this seriously and are pursuing a number of leads to identify these offenders and locate the items they’ve stolen.
“After leaving the store, the offenders have travelled south on Cranford St in a stolen black Subaru Forester.
“We would ask motorists who were in the area at the time to check their dashcam footage, and for anyone who may have seent [the Subaru or the o get in touch with us.”
As daylight broke, staff and contractors arrived at the shop to sweep up debris and repair the damaged roller doors.
Tipple
said he would not know what was stolen until a stocktake was completed.
The clean-up at Gun City in Christchurch after it was ram raided overnight. Photo / George Heard
Ammunition could be seen strewn across the store.
Ammunition boxes later discovered to be filled with glass were lying across the footpath.
Tyre marks led to where the car entered the store and the shop’s glass entrance was badly damaged.
Neighbouring EMega store owner Jeremy Joseph told the Herald his bicycle outlet had initially felt safer being next to a gun shop, given how strenuous Gun City’s security measures were.
Police were investigating at the shop this morning. Photo / NZME
“It’s like a fortress,” he said.
“You look at the security [the offenders] had to go through. We thought it was impenetrable. We looked at the big bollard in front and thought ‘no way’.”
Joseph’s store captured CCTV of the ram raid, which shows a dark-coloured vehicle backing up to the front doors of Gun City while a second vehicle pulls up outside.
The first vehicle reverses at speed into the gun shop’s front doors, before making two unsuccessful attempts to smash the doors.
One person gets out of the accompanying car as a third and fourth attempt are made to crash into Gun City.
A vehicle is caught on CCTV video in a ram raid at Gun City in Christchurch.
Three figures are then seen running towards the store and raiding it. It took just 53 seconds for them to grab what they wanted and dump it in the getaway car.
The three returned a second time, stealing more weapons and ammunition before making a getaway.
Joseph said the footage reminded him of the time his shop had been broken into a year earlier, one of three break-ins during his tenure.
“They took 14 scooters collectively and ransacked the shop. Somehow the alarms didn’t even go off, so we didn’t find out until the following morning,” he said.
“I think about $40,000 worth of stock was stolen. It wasn’t pretty.”
Joseph said Tipple and the shop’s management would be experiencing a similar gut-wrenching feeling.
“When you arrive it’s first anger that people can come and take what isn’t theirs. Now you look at protecting staff onsite,” he said.
He said one of the biggest hits for owners can be the inconvenience.
“You’ve got hundreds of thousands of products to account for. They’ll be going through all the invoices, working through it with insurance companies and it could take five months to go through,” he said.
“That’s mass inconvenience for you.”
Police returned to Gun City at 8am today.
A spokesperson said police were initially called to the store at 2.30am, after it was broken into by four offenders.
“A vehicle has been used to gain entry, and a stolen Mazda Demio has been recovered at the scene. The offenders left in a black Subaru Forester.”
The scene of a burglary at Stirling Sports at the Palms Shopping Mall in Shirley, Christchurch. Photo / Supplied
Meanwhile, at about 5.20am, a Stirling Sports store at the Palms Shopping Mall in Shirley was burgled by three men who used mallets to gain entry.
“The offenders left in a small black car, possibly a Suzuki Swift,” a police spokesman said.
“It is not yet known if the events are linked. However, in both cases, CCTV is being reviewed and police are following lines of inquiry to apprehend the offenders.”
Bell said Gun City would be reviewing its security measures.
“If you know anything about Gun City, it’s that they’re thorough in everything they do.”
Anyone who might have seen the Mazda Demio, registration DDF311, or the Subaru Forester, registration LCY783, early this morning is asked to call 111 and reference the case number 221202/5373.
