March 17, 2022 UPDATE:
A Winnemucca man who admitted to his role in a conspiracy to steal multiple firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) was sentenced today to three years and four months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
Travis Klyn (41) pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to steal, take, or carry away firearms from the premises of an FFL in September 2021. In addition to the prison term, Chief U.S. District Judge Miranda M. Du ordered Klyn to pay $15,309.43 in restitution.
According to court documents, on February 19, 2020, Klyn, co-defendant George Wyatt Elms, and one other individual broke into a hardware store in Winnemucca to steal firearms. They removed a panel in the roof, dropped down approximately ten feet onto a nearby staircase, and then broke through the store’s door. Once inside, Elms used a pickaxe to break into a gun case, from which he and another individual stole 25 firearms. Klyn ran out of the store before the theft of the firearms. Before carrying out the robbery, they had intentionally set a brush fire in a nearby field to divert law enforcement away from the store.
Co-defendant Elms pleaded guilty in November 2021 to one count of theft of firearms from the premises of an FFL. He was sentenced to six years in prison on March 4, 2022.
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Original Story:
The United States Attorney's Office, District of Nevada reports two Winnemucca residents were charged with conspiracy to steal multiple firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) in February.
They made their initial appearances on Friday.
Officials said 31-year-old George Elms and 39-year-old Travis Klyn allegedly conspired to steal 25 firearms from an FFL in Winnemucca on February 19.
Officials said surveillance footage from that day showed an individual wearing what appears to be a clown mask, pacing back and forth and shining a flashlight through a warehouse. They said according to the footage, three individuals were able to gain entry into the warehouse by removing a panel in the roof.
They said they dropped down approximately ten feet onto a nearby staircase, and then broke through a door.
Officials said on the surveillance video, one individual used a pickaxe to break the glass of a gun case and the others loaded firearms into their backpacks.
They said Elms and Klyn were charged with one county of conspiracy to steal, take or carry away firearms from the premises of an FFL. Elms is also charged with one count of theft of firearms from the premises of an FFL.
Officials said the two are scheduled a preliminary hearing on April 16.
If convicted, the statutory maximum sentence is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy to steal, and ten years with a $250,000 fine for the theft.
