M4 rifle stolen from unmarked police truck in Gastonia

GASTONIA, N.C. — A police officer from South Carolina became the victim of a crime while attending a training session this week at the Gastonia Police Department, and now a police rifle is missing.

According to GPD, officers got a call Monday afternoon about a truck that was broken into at a hotel parking lot on Remount Road. The officers found two broken windows on the truck and learned that it was an unmarked police vehicle from the Horry County, South Carolina, Police Department. Horry County is about 20 miles northwest of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

A spokesperson with the Gastonia Police Department says the vehicle belonged to an officer who “happened to be attending training at GPD.”

An M4 police rifle was reportedly taken from the back cab of the truck, along with a police vest and ammunition, according to a statement from GPD to Channel 9. Investigators in Gastonia later found the vest and some of the ammo discarded in a nearby dumpster.

This is the second time in a month that a theft involving police equipment from outside Gastonia ended up involving GPD. Back on Sept. 5, a woman was arrested after allegedly stealing a Shelby Police cruiser and leading officers on a high-speed chase before being stopped at Mr. Tire on West Franklin Boulevard.

It’s not clear if the police department has identified any potential suspect or suspects in Monday’s theft.

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