The gun shop that sold the semi-automatic rifle used in the Florida school shooting that left 17 dead has closed “indefinitely.”
The Miami Herald reports that the owners of Sunrise Tactical Supply, the Coral Springs, Florida shop that authorities say sold confessed shooter Nikolas Cruz the AR-15 assault weapon in February 2017, has been “closed indefinitely.”
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The owners of the small business, located in a strip mall near Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, said they ensure Cruz had filled out all required paperwork, which included his driver’s license and assurances he did not suffer from mental illness. Through their attorney, the store owners say that Cruz only purchased only the semi-automatic rifle and not did not buy any accessories, modifications or ammunition.
Attorney Douglas Rudman, who represents shop owners Michael and Lisa Morrison, told the Miami Herald on Thursday that Cruz may have been deliberate in not drawing suspicion to himself when purchasing the weapon last February.
“It is for that reason that no red flags were raised,” Rudman said. “It seems like Mr. Cruz made a deliberate attempt to not draw suspicion by not buying too many things from one place.”
“The tremendous sense of responsibility in this situation and just horribleness that they feel that one of their weapons fell into the hands of this maniac,” Rudman said. “They are scared — not just for their safety — but more importantly about how the reaction is going to be for the rest of the community as they try to reenter it.”
The Daily Mail reports that Cruz bought other assault weapons from another local gun store — Gun World of South Florida — since 2016, but not the one used in last week’s killing spree.
“He was not a regular customer of ours,” Kim Waltuch, the owner of Gun World, told the Daily Mail. “We went through the process of the background checks which is the only way we release a firearm. He was immediately approved.”
Waltuch said the store has been raising money for victims of the shooting.
A law enforcement source who was briefed on the case told CNN that Cruz owned at least 10 firearms, all of which were rifles. Officials are reportedly working to track the purchases, all of which appear to have been made within the last year or so.
Cruz was arrested within hours after the shooting and charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder. He confessed to being the shooter shortly after he was arrested. He is expected to plea guilty if prosecutors will waive execution as punishment, according to the Miami Herald.
In a live court appearance Monday, Cruz kept his head down and didn’t say a word.
