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Two charged in theft of over 100 guns from South Side rail yard
An alleged thief and his fence have been charged in connection with the theft of more than 100 new guns from a freight train that was stopped overnight at a South Side rail yard in April, according to federal authorities.
Alexander Peebles, 44, and Warren Gates, 48, were charged in separate criminal complaints stemming from the April 12 robbery of the cargo train at 8000 S. South Chicago Ave., court records show.
The train was carrying 318 firearms from the Ruger factory in New Hampshire to Spokane, Wash., and had stopped in Chicago for the night, according to the charges. About 7 a.m. that day, a railroad employee noticed that several locks and seals on the train had been cut open, and police later found bolt cutters and a Ruger magazine in the yard.
Federal agents who inspected the train when it arrived at its final destination discovered that a total of 111 guns were missing, according to the charges. Six of the guns have since been recovered "in unrelated incidents" throughout Chicago, the complaint alleged. The charges did not specify if the guns had been used to commit crimes.
According to the charges, Peebles, of the 900 block of East 80th Street, was arrested last week after another man who had been caught trying to rob the same train yard began cooperating with authorities and gave them information about the April robbery of the guns.
In a videotaped statement, Peebles admitted that he had committed the theft of the firearms with nine other individuals, who each kept 13 of the guns, according to the charges. Peebles said he kept one of the pistols for himself and sold the other 12 to a man he knew as "Chuck" for $2,200.
After being shown photographs, Peebles identified Chuck as Gates, a convicted felon who was prohibited from possessing firearms, according to the charges. Peebles said various crews who commit train break-ins know Gates as "a known fence for stolen items," the complaint alleged.
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On Tuesday, federal agents searched a storage locker in Matteson that had been rented by Gates and found electronics, clothing, shoes and other items in their original boxes and with tags still attached, the charges alleged.
Gates appeared in court Wednesday and was ordered held in custody pending a detention hearing Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Gilbert. Peebles was freed on bail after appearing before Gilbert on Wednesday, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
jmeisner@tribpub.com
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