New Kensington gun store burglary suspects enter not guilty pleas
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A federal grand jury returned indictments against two men accused of burglarizing a New Kensington gun store in January.
Michael Guin, 26, of Harrison and Steyn Sarduy, 18, no address available, each are charged with conspiracy and theft of a firearm from a licensed firearms dealer. Guin also is charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, having been convicted of theft and trespassing in Beaver County in July 2017.
Guin and Sarduy were arrested within two days of the Jan. 22 burglary. Authorities said Sarduy made a full confession in which he identified Guin as the second perpetrator and claimed the burglary was Guin’s idea.
Guin and Sarduy are being held at the Butler County jail, which also is a federal detention facility. They each entered not guilty pleas when they were arraigned Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patricia L. Dodge in federal court, according to court records.
A total of 24 firearms were taken after, authorities allege, Guin and Sarduy used a pickup truck as a battering ram Jan. 22 to break into RC Firearms at the lower rear of a building on Freeport Street.
The weapons included 17 9 mm handguns, three .380-caliber handguns, two 12-gauge shotguns, one .45-caliber handgun and one .40-caliber handgun.
They spent about a minute in the store before fleeing in the pickup, which was found on Greenridge Road in New Kensington, according to police.
Three of the 24 guns have been recovered, according to a spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. They have not been identified by type.
Two were found during a traffic stop in Homestead, while one was found in a wooded area of New Kensington.
Dive teams searched the Allegheny River for the guns in early February, but none was found in the river, the spokesman said.
According to the indictments, Guin and Sarduy conspired to steal a truck from a New Kensington business, which they used to break through the front door of RC Firearms. Once inside, they used a hammer to break multiple glass display cases.
The theft charges carry sentences of up to 10 years in prison and $250,000 fines, while the conspiracy counts are punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000 or twice the value of the stolen guns.
On the count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, Guin faces up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Father-and-son Roy and Cole Berg opened RC Firearms in early 2023.
After installing additional security measures and physical barriers to prevent a similar break-in, they reopened the store Feb. 3.