Advertisement

Major Gun Ring Cracked, Officers Say

Share
Times Staff Writers

Los Angeles police officers and federal investigators have arrested two men and confiscated more than 150 guns in what authorities believe was the breakup of a major weapons-trafficking ring.

One of the suspects was described by police Friday as “a self-professed Nazi enthusiast . . . involved in the illegal sale and trafficking of weapons throughout the United States.”

Many of the guns seized were intended to be sold to gang members and criminals in the Los Angeles area and elsewhere in the country, authorities said.

Advertisement

The Thursday night arrests and seizure of the weapons resulted from a four-month investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department’s Anti-Terrorist Division and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Suspects Named

Taken into custody were Raymond Leiler, 55, of the Sunland-Tujunga area, and Thomas Buckley, 45, of Pasadena. Police described Leiler as the self-admitted Nazi.

Assistant Police Chief Robert L. Vernon said that Leiler’s association with the right-wing group “is based on some statements (he) made . . . and also on some memorabilia and artifacts we saw in (Leiler’s) house.”

Police Department spokesman Cmdr. William Booth said there was no indication that Leiler’s alleged involvement in weapons trafficking was related to his political beliefs.

Among the guns seized were a Russian-made .762 submachine gun, a Japanese machine gun, a Thompson submachine gun, a sawed-off shotgun, a German 9-millimeter submachine gun and two pistols illegally modified with shoulder stocks, all of which are illegal to possess.

During the investigation, Leiler allegedly sold three of the illegal weapons to undercover officers from the federal firearms licensing agency, authorities said.

Advertisement

Federal Special Agent Robert Skopeck said Leiler is being charged with selling automatic weapons and possessing illegal firearms. Buckley is charged with possessing an illegal weapon. Both men were scheduled for arraignment Friday before a U.S. magistrate.

Advertisement