A tractor-trailer driver for a Stratford company was arrested Friday for allegedly using his truck to transport 111 stolen handguns from Massachusetts to Bridgeport and sell some of them on the street.
Elliot Perez, an employee of Pace Motor Lanes, stole the handguns from the Smith & Wesson plant in Springfield, Mass. on Nov. 8, 2012, police announced Monday.
Police have also charged Michael Murphy for the alleged sale of handguns.
Perez faces charges of: 111 counts of criminal possession of a firearm; 111 counts of theft of a firearm; one count of illegal sale of a firearm; one count of transfer of a firearm by person ineligible to possess same; and five counts of weapon in a motor vehicle.
Police said Monday that Perez is being held on $500,000 bond and is due in court Dec. 6.
Murphy has been charged with criminal possession of a firearm; carrying a pistol without a permit; and theft of a firearm. He was released on $100,000 bond and is also due in court Dec. 6, police said.
Police said they were able to retrieve 28 of the 111 firearms that were stolen.
The investigation was a joint effort which involved the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Bridgeport Police Department.
Anyone who may have information is urged to contact the Stratford Police Department at 203.385.4119, or the Stratford Crime Tip Hotline at 203.375.8477, or the ATF at 203.773.2060.
