That's Not Good: AR-15 Stolen From Gun Lobbyist's Car

Utah Shooting Sport Council President Clark Aposhian (right). The Utah Shooting Sports Council recently offered six hours of training in handling concealed weapons in the latest effort to arm teachers to confront school assailants. (Facebook).

Utah police say a semi-automatic rifle belonging to Clark Aposhian has been stolen. For those who don't know who Aposhian is, he is the president of the state's biggest gun lobby.

The AR-15 rifle, which is equipped with a thermal-imaging scope, "was stolen from a locked car in the driveway,” Deseret News reports, citing Cottonwood Heights Sgt. Scott Peck.

Peck said it "raises the hair on the back of your neck" to know that someone is running around with a stolen rifle.

"To know that a bona fide thief has this in his hands, what's he going to do with it?" he asked. "He's probably going to trade it for drugs or sell it, but it will stay on the lay-low. We have the serial number, so it will be tough to get rid of.”

Cottonwood Heights Police say the AR-15 rifle was stolen late Wednesday or early Thursday from a locked car parked in the driveway of his home.

“Aposhian checked the car about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday night. Thursday morning, a family member noticed the door handle had been ‘punched’ open,” Deseret News notes. “The car's stereo was also stolen.”

Why was the rifle in the car in the first place? And was it locked away?

“Aposhian said the gun was stored in a secure box in the back of his locked vehicle, which is usually kept in the garage. He had parked the Dodge Magnum in his driveway in order to do some spring cleaning,” the report adds.

The Utah Shooting Sports Council chairman claims that “it would have taken considerable time and effort to penetrate the locked box,” the News notes. Aposhian maintains that there was nothing “negligent” or “unsafe” about how the rifle was stored.

He adds that the gun was unloaded and that no ammunition was stored with the weapon.

"I continue to handle and store firearms very safely. … Let's work on catching the person who did this," he told the Deseret News.

"When they catch this person, which I certainly hope they will, I'll certainly be watching closely to see what happens."

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The AP contributed to this report. Featured image Getty Images.