Vernon Men Facing Fed Offenses In Stafford Pawn Shop Gun Theft

VERNON/STAFFORD, CT — Two men who were arrested after a firearms-related incident in Vernon last week in a case connected with guns stolen from a Stafford pawn shop are now facing federal offenses, a leading prosecutor said.

John Durham, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced Tuesday that 32-year-old Damien Garcia, 32, and 37-year-old Lawrence McEwan, both of Vernon, have been charged by a federal criminal complaint with firearms offenses related to the theft of guns from a Stafford pawn shop on Sept. 14.

Garcia and McEwen were originally arrested on state charges on Sept. 17.

Garcia, whose initial $100,000 bond was reduced to a promise to appear in court, was arrested on the federal charges Monday, Durham said. He is now being detained pending a detention hearing that is scheduled for Sept. 26.

McEwen has been detained on a $50,000 bond since his state arrest.

According to the criminal complaint, on Sept. 15, 2019, the Connecticut State Police received a report that the Simon Says Pawn Shop, a federal firearms licensee in Stafford, had been burglarized the previous evening and that several guns had been stolen.

Investigators subsequently determined that six handguns were missing from the store.

On Sept. 17, Vernon police received a tip that Garcia was involved in the burglary and was in possession of a stolen firearm, according to case records. That evening, after officers approached Garcia and McEwen on West Main Street in Vernon, Garcia and McEwen attempted to flee, but were caught quickly, according to case records.

After both were apprehended, officers recovered a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson pistol that McEwen discarded as he ran away, rercords show. The firearm was one of the six stolen from the Simon Says Pawn Shop, police and federal authorities said.

The other five missing handguns have not been recovered, Durham said.

Record show that Garcia and McEwen have previously been convicted of multiple felony offenses.

The complaint charges Garcia and McEwen with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of a stolen firearm. Both offenses carry a maximum prison term of 10 years.