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Two 16-year-olds were arrested in Maryland after burglars used a stolen truck to crash through the entrance of Dominion Defense in Springfield and steal firearms early Sunday, March 23. A third teenage suspect remained at large.
The break-in happened around 1:30 a.m. at the Fullerton Road gun store, which has been targeted repeatedly in recent years. Surveillance footage showed the truck, reported stolen March 21, smashing through the glass front doors.
The burglars entered carrying bags, broke open display cases—including by striking them with handgun grips—and loaded the bags with firearms. They fled after the store’s alarm began sounding.
Fairfax County police arrived within five minutes of receiving the alarm. Officers found the abandoned truck nearby and discovered evidence that another vehicle had been stolen. After identifying its model and license plate, investigators used license plate readers to track it toward Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Fairfax County’s helicopter unit helped ground officers locate suspects hiding in garbage containers using thermal-imaging equipment. The airborne crew also identified containers where stolen guns had apparently been discarded.
One teenager separated from the other two after they left the stolen car. Police prioritized the suspects carrying bags visibly filled with firearms, arresting two of them while continuing to search for the third.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis announced the arrests at a March 24 news conference, calling the burglary a brazen crime followed by a rapid apprehension. The operation involved Fairfax County and Maryland police, the helicopter unit and federal firearms agents.
The suspects remained in Maryland, where Davis said state law required that they be charged as adults. Fairfax County charges were pending, and federal charges were also possible.
Store has been targeted repeatedly
Dominion Defense sits behind a multi-business building in an area filled with cafes, auto-body shops and material suppliers. The entrance cannot be seen from Fullerton Road, and the area is generally quiet at night.
Although the store has indoor surveillance cameras and an alarm, its glass entrance lacks hardened barriers such as bollards or steel reinforcement. Suspects have been arrested after previous incidents, but authorities have not recovered every firearm stolen from the business.
Police responded to another alarm there on Dec. 20, 2024, and arrested a 20-year-old man who had not managed to enter. Officers said he had burglary tools and was wearing a mask. He was released on bond and faced an April preliminary hearing on felony charges.
In an April 29, 2023 burglary, thieves used a stolen Acura to break through the glass door and took 53 firearms. Police arrested Maryland residents Cedric Minger, 21, and Victor Jones, 22. Fifteen guns were recovered, and their felony cases were dropped in August 2023.
Five teenagers—the youngest 13—and two adults were arrested in November 2024 in connection with a Sept. 18 burglary. Surveillance footage showed four teenagers using a stolen Kia to break the glass entrance before carrying away guns. Police linked the group’s broader crime spree to other burglaries, shootings and an abduction. Eight of the 14 stolen firearms were recovered.
Anthony Spotswood, the federal firearms agency’s special agent in charge, said the stolen weapons were intended for criminal activity rather than recreational shooting and posed a threat to the community.
Federal statistics show 873 firearms were reported lost or stolen in Virginia during 2023, while 14,874 recovered guns were traced. Nationwide, federally licensed dealers reported more than 17,000 firearms lost or stolen in 2022—an average of more than 45 each day.
Asked what security improvements might be needed at the repeatedly burglarized store, Davis said, “We’re here again. Something needs to change.”