Conn Cop accused of illegal transferring 7 firearms to criminals

[WhiteFeather]

Before the LEO bashing begins.

I want to say something up front. There are many fine outstanding police officers that uphold their oaths to the Constitution that we all owe a great deal of gratitude and thanks and do their best as peace officers to protect our rights.
There are is a very large groups that is just a job and can be ok, jerks or a pain in the butt to deal with.
On the other extreme there are ones that are outright abusive of our rights, the laws with I got a badge and ”I am the law here” BS bully mentality and will selectively enforce the laws etc, and they forget their jobs and positions existing for our benefit, not the other way around.

When cops like this guy go bad, they make all police look bad and it’s the fine blue line BS that exist in many police departments that protects these ones till they go total criminal. If this guy is found guilty throw the book at him max.

So what would mandatory Lost and Stolen firearm reporting do when the police go bad?


http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2...1-copsguns.txt

Waterbury officer’s gun used in shootings, say cops (with documents)

NEW HAVEN — When a gun battle erupted outside Humphrey’s East bar in December, authorities had no way of knowing that one of the guns belonged to a Waterbury police sergeant.

On Wednesday, nine months later, Sgt. Harold David Setzer, 41, a 17-year veteran of the Waterbury force, was charged with seven counts of illegally transferring or selling firearms, one count for each of seven handguns he owns that he can’t account for, including a .40-caliber Sig Sauer pistol that police say was used in five shooting incidents in New Haven between December 2008 and June of this year.

Setzer has been on paid leave since July and turned in his service gun and badge. He lives on Davis Street in New Haven with his son and mother, who lives on the first floor of the multifamily home he owns. All the missing weapons were privately owned.

Setzer surrendered to police Wednesday afternoon and was released on $50,000 bail. In addition to the weapons charges, he also faces counts of manufacturing bombs, risk of injury to a minor, illegal possession of an assault rifle, illegal possession of explosives and illegal possession of fireworks.

The latter charges stem from an August raid of his home in which police recovered an assault rifle, equipped with a bayonet and flash suppressor, an “improvised explosive device” and commercial-grade fireworks mortar shells, police said.

No one answered the door of his house at 73-75 Davis St. Wednesday.

In a press release, Officer Joe Avery said the charges stem from an investigation led by Lt. Ken Blanchard and Detective Annemarie LaPorta in which police “determined that several of Setzer’s guns ended up in the hands of convicted felons on the streets of New Haven.”

Setzer never made a stolen gun report and could not explain where his guns were or how they ended up in the hands of convicted felons.

As the investigation unfolded, a New Haven lieutenant contacted Waterbury police, telling the deputy chief that “he felt he wasn’t getting the proper information from Setzer,” acting Waterbury Police Superintendent Michael Gugliotti told the Waterbury Repubican-American.

According to New Haven police, things began to unravel for Setzer in June, when during an arrest, police recovered a .32-caliber pistol that was registered to Setzer. It hadn’t been reported stolen, and Setzer claimed he didn’t realize it was missing.

In August, police recovered the .40-caliber handgun during another arrest. That gun also wasn’t reported stolen, but state records showed it, too, was registered to Setzer, police said.

When the gun was test fired at the state forensics lab and entered into a computer database of ballistics evidence recovered at shooting scenes, the result was startling: Five hits came back for incidents on Dec. 13, 2008, April 15, April 19, June 4 and June 21, all in New Haven.

It wasn’t immediately clear if anyone was wounded in any of the incidents.

When questioned by police, Setzer didn’t have an explanation, or at least not one that police say held up to scrutiny — for that or the other six handguns he couldn’t account for. A rifle and shotgun also were missing, police said.

The Dec. 13 incident was particularly serious. There was a gunfight on Humphrey Street, and one of the shooters jumped into a sport utility vehicle.

Officers chased on foot. When the engine revved and SUV struck one of the officers, two cops opened fire on the vehicle.

From the initial shooting, police recovered .40-caliber shell casings later linked to Setzer’s gun, and 9 mm casings that matched bullets fired in a January 2009 homicide.

State forensics experts said the 9 mm casings appeared to be fired from a Glock-style weapon. One of the other weapons that Setzer can’t account for is a Glock 9 mm, police said.

In August, a week after police recovered the .40-caliber weapon, Setzer told Waterbury police that his 15-year-old son had information about what might have happened to the missing weapons. The youth claimed that, a few months earlier, he had some friends over to the house to play video games and showed them two of his father’s guns, including the .40-caliber, police say.

The son said he put the guns away and left the room for a moment and when he returned, discovered two guns and one of his friends were gone.

Based on that account, the guns would have been stolen sometime in June, but ballistic evidence, police note, showed that at least three of the shootings happened before the son said the .40-caliber weapon was stolen.

Police said they discovered Setzer had owned nearly 160 guns.

During his police career, Setzer has received three commendations, including an award for catching a murder suspect in 2004.

More info here, note the L&S mention and reporting as people often do to cover up a crime. (Another flaw with the whole L&S concept)

http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2...3-nesetzer.txt

Attorneys call cop’s gun case ‘misunderstanding’

NEW HAVEN — Attorneys for a Waterbury police sergeant accused of improperly selling or transferring seven firearms — including one that later was used in five different New Haven shootings — described the case as a “misunderstanding” and said their client is innocent.

Harold David Setzer, 41, of Davis Street, New Haven, made a brief appearance in Superior Court Thursday. No plea was entered and the case was transferred to the “Part A” courthouse at 235 Church St. where more serious matters are heard.

Setzer is on paid leave from the Waterbury force.

Attorney Michael Jefferson, who is representing Setzer along with Hamden attorney Frank Cannatelli, called Setzer a “decorated police officer” who once coached Jefferson’s son in Little League.

“It is a misunderstanding and David is anxious to have his day in court,” Jefferson said outside the courthouse. “Right now, David is anxious to get on with his life and pursue this and clear his name.”

Asked if his client was illegally selling guns, he replied, “Absolutely not. That’s ridiculous.”

According to New Haven police, two firearms that belonged to the 17-year police officer ended up in the hands of convicted felons, and seven other firearms registered to him remain unaccounted for, police said.

Setzer faces seven counts of illegal transfer or sale of a firearm, along with charges of manufacture of bombs, criminal possession of an assault weapon, illegal possession of explosives, illegal possession of firearms and risk of injury to a minor. The bulk of the charges stem from a search warrant police executed at Setzer’s house in August. The risk charge apparently was filed because the fireworks and explosive shells were in his home that he shares with his 15-year-old son.

Over the last seven months, Setzer hit the Police Department’s radar screen in three guns cases, but the final two appear to be what put him in the cross hairs of a criminal probe.

According to police, Setzer in March reported two firearms stolen from his vehicle. Two months later, one of the guns, a .357 revolver, was recovered.

Then in June, police arrested a 24-year-old man with a .32-caliber pistol. It was registered to Setzer and hadn’t been reported stolen. When police inquired, Setzer told detectives he had traded in the weapon at a Bethany gun dealer, but police say he couldn’t provide documentation.

The third incident occurred Aug. 8. Police arrested three felons in possession of another one of Setzer’s guns, this one a .40-caliber police later learned had been used in a shootout outside a Humphrey Street bar. That gun hadn’t been reported stolen.

State police records show Setzer has 23 firearms registered to him. Fifteen have been seized by police, one remains an unrecovered stolen firearm and seven are unaccounted for.

Setzer told them he, at one point, had about 65 weapons but sold most to gun dealers when he encountered financial problems three or four years ago. He claimed he had 16 left.

Setzer has been a firearms instructor at the Waterbury force for more than a decade.

[unclejumbo]

Interesting, I wonder what will come out. My guess...either he or his son has a drug problem. Guns being traded for drugs is usually how they find their way out there.

I think he is still screwed because of the other things found during the execution of the search warrant. Illegal fireworks and apparently a rifle that is illegal in Connecticut. I wonder what the "bomb" is. Something lethal or cranking out homemade M-80s?

There are cases where people didn't report stolen guns because they knew it was their kid and didn't want them to get in trouble. Guns found later, used in a crime, then the truth comes out.

[customloaded]

Personal experience speaks volumes. My X-girlfriends kids would get into my gun safe and show off my firearms to their friends. At some point, I went to the safe and blam, 6 pistols stolen. I didn't know when, how, who etc...till I started digging. Never had one recovered. Yes, I reported them stolen/missing but I know the small town PD didn't even bother to put them in Metro/NCIC. Sucks for sure.

A few years later, like 2 or 3, the chief of police had her department issued firearm stolen by her husband. She tried to cover that up, didn't work out so well for her. Oh, she's a state employee now!! LOL

My point is, I don't think the officer is at fault here. I have no doubt it was his kid that showed his guns to friends and the friends stole them over a period of time. Just my opinion.

[Al-Mumit]

I guess the question is will he throw his kid under the bus, or take the hit himself?

[LittleRedToyota]

I wonder what the "bomb" is. Something lethal or cranking out homemade M-80s?

yep. and when was the last time you saw an AR (probably what the "assault rifle" was) that did not have a flash suppressor attached to it?

i don't know what happened in this case, but it sounds like some aspects of the case are being distorted the way they generally are distorted in such cases.

imho, if the guy really was selling/providing guns to criminals, throw the book at him. if he was protecting his son, throw the book at his son and end his career in LE.

as for the rest of it...this country really needs to rediscover the 2nd amendment.

[fingers80002]

Not enough info for me to make a decision at this time.
Good L&S points, though.....

[mredder351]

This guy could afford 160 different firearms and not a safe? He's probably covering up for his kid...

[ksig1869]

It sucks that a cop abuses his position, even just one. I hope they get to the bottom of this and determine what happened. i would honestly have more respect for the guy if he was protecting his son, but still needs to be punished

[wa3ra]

He may have a safe...doesn't help if the kid knows the combo.

160 guns...I suspect you might not miss one or two...or 'seven'...shouldn't that 'traded' gun be in the dealer's bound book?

OK, so we have several guns that he can't account for, that don't appear to have turned up anywhere else, either. How can you charge someone with selling them if you haven't recovered them?

Lost and Stolen ordinances, anybody?

Looks to me like it could be what they say it is, or a legitimate robbery, or the kid one way or another letting the guns loose; regardless, it sounds like a prosecutor with a bug up his ass for this cop...

[Brick]

Well there is a bright spot to this story. Possiblity of his son or son's friends stealing his guns. At least the guns recovered from crimes were not from the Police impound/evidence room as was the case with a Chicago officer years ago.