A Missouri man has admitted to stealing firearms and other items from a farm and home store in Potosi, Missouri, in 2021.
Gregory Snyder, 45, of Bismarck, St. Francois County, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to the theft of firearms from a federally licensed firearms dealer and possession of body armor by a violent felon.
Snyder’s guilty plea revealed that he hid in the store on September 19, 2021, and emerged after closing time to steal power tools, camping gear, and 13 guns, including eight rifles and five shotguns. He loaded the guns and other stolen goods into his car and took them to a river in eastern Washington County. Snyder returned early the next morning for more items, but by then, Potosi Police Department officers had noticed evidence of the burglary. They stopped and questioned Snyder, who no longer had the stolen goods in his car. Although he denied involvement in the burglary, he was found drinking a Mountain Dew stolen from the store, wearing clothing matching that of the burglar, and having stolen Kevlar vests in his car.
Two of the shotguns have been recovered, but more than $12,000 worth of stolen goods, including the other guns, remain missing.
Snyder is scheduled to be sentenced on November 6.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Potosi Police Department are investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nino Przulj is prosecuting the case.
