The gunman who killed three women in an aerobics class at a Pittsburgh-area gym bought accessories for his weapons from the same dealer that sold a gun to the Virginia Tech shooter.
George Sodini, 48, purchased the items from TGSCOM Inc. of Green Bay, Wis., before committing the Aug. 4 massacre that left three women dead and nine wounded. He then killed himself.
They are a leading supplier. I’ve been a customer too. One of my Glock 15 round magazines was purchased from them, during the height of the Assault Weapons Ban, I might add. Cost me more back then, but the cost wasn’t prohibitive. My Glock came with two 10 round Clinton magazines. For carry, I decided to spring for the standard fifteen round mag. The day after the ban expired, I went out and bought two more stamped “Restricted – For Military and Law Enforcement Use Only” just because I could. But my point is that they are a leading supplier. I’m sure there are many many gun owners who have done business with them. I’d hate to have their name dragged through the mud, as if they are seeking out pscyhos and nutjobs to do business with.
The Roanoke Times had this up too. I posted a quick commentary earlier in my blog, and I fully expect plenty of PSH editorials in the next few days or so calling for TGSCOM to be shut down, or for banning internet gun sales, or something similar.
Also note that they don’t say what accessories he purchased. They may actually have nothing to do with the shooting, but the VT Killer link is too good for the anti-gun MSM (but I repeat myself) to pass up.
At least Fox reported that it was accessories, others are reporting that he bought his gun from them!
Around the same time that this gym shooting happened, I noticed that several of the online gun accessory dealers got these South Korean-made 75 round drums for AK-47-type rifles in stock.
These drums are supposedly comparable to the Chinese-made drums that used to be widely on the US market, and for a price of about 130 bucks or so, they are so much cheaper than the Bulgarian-made drums.
Anyway, I am not going to waste any more time getting a few of these cheaper South Korean-made drums for myself, since I worry that it’s only a matter of time that somebody in the Obama administration will find a slick-ish, backdoor manner to put this type of item and other high-capacity magazines on a US Customs import ban list, and then use shooting rampages like the one earlier this week as their rationale for it.
I don’t think there’s any statutory authority to ban magazines, only firearms.
I live in Green Bay, and this was also reported in the local newspaper this morning. The definite implication of the news story was that TGSCOM had done something wrong or was complicite in some way in the crime.
Why on earth would this even be mentioned in a reporting of this or any crime? TGSCOM is simply a supplier of a good. How people use their purchases is entirely their own responsibility. The supplier of a legal good cannot control how it is used – for evil or for good.
What’s next? Castigating car dealers if the cars they sell are involved in hit-and-runs? (“That’s the third time a car from Bill’s auto was used in a crime!”) How about crimes utilizing knives? (“The last five local stabbings all involved cutlery obtained from Target!!”).
This kind of reporting is absurd and irrelevant. The only possible reason I can see for it is to manipulate public opinion to create a national mood supportive of gun control.
As I recall, following the VT crimes, Eric Thompson was unshaken despite efforts to vilify him. As I recall, Eric politely showed them his raised middle finger.
Here is his recent statement …
August 7, 2009
Green Bay, Wisconsin
I am deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life at the hands of a disturbed and socially stunted mad man. My heartfelt condolences go out to the families and friends of the victims of this senseless tragedy.
Pennsylvania gym shooter George Sodini, 48, killed three women in an aerobics class at a Pittsurgh-area gym on August 4. Sodini purchased two firearm accesories, a Glock magazine and a Glock magazine loader, in April 2008 from a TGSCOM, Inc. website, http://www.shotgunworks.com/.
This event underscores the need for people to realize two important facts. The first is that no matter how responsive law enforcement is or can be, it is not good enough to rely upon for the safety of yourself or your family. The second fact is that you are legally responsible for your own protection.
In Castlerock v. Gonzales, the Supreme Court ruled that an individual does NOT have any expectation to police protection even in the event of a restraining order. This ruling clearly states that the government sees that you are responsible for your own protection.
Even though I am an ardent supporter of law enforcement, we must realize that they are not, nor can they be, superheroes. A recent report by the Department of Justice states that calls with reports of crimes of violence resulted in the following police response times.
0 – 5 minutes = 26.4%
6 – 10 minutes = 32.0%
11 minutes – 1 hour = 29.7%
Think of the following scenario. You are a woman sleeping in bed and you hear your door being kicked in. You call 911, begging for help. Assuming that the intruder is there to hurt or rape you, the seconds begin to tick away. He kicks in the bedroom door 30 seconds later. He could have you, your daughter, sister, or mother in his hands inside of
60 seconds. Who knows what could happen after that point, but keep in mind that there is only a 26.4% chance that the police are going to be there within the next 4 MINUTES! What could happen in 4 minutes?
-or-
He kicks in the bedroom door 30 seconds later and BANG!!!
Many police officers carry a gun while off duty. The people that we entrust to protect us realize the importance of being able to protect themselves. Protect yourself, your family and your loved ones by learning how to defend yourself and teaching others how to do the same. The Supreme Court says that you are on your own and violent criminals tend not to wait for the police to arrive on time. My only hope is that many more people will realize this and hopefully prevent tragedies like this one in the future.
Eric Thompson
President and Owner
TGSCOM Inc.
About TGSCOM, Inc.
TGSCOM, Inc., a family-owned company, was founded in Arizona in 1999. TGSCOM, Inc. was granted a Federal Firearms License (FFL) by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and is one of the largest online retailers of firearms and firearm accessories. In October of 2006, TGSCOM, Inc. relocated from Phoenix, Arizona to Green Bay, Wisconsin.
TGSCOM, Inc. operates the following websites: TopGlock.com and TheGunSource.com.