Thread by @reveal

1/ There are at least 82,000 stolen guns missing from #Florida. They’ve become a major supply chain for criminals.

We investigated for 10 months with @TB_Times: revealnews.org/article/82000-…

2/ The problem is pretty widespread. In Tampa Bay alone, at least 9,000 stolen guns are missing. That’s just the beginning ...

3/ The most common thief swipes a single gun out of an unlocked car.

Cops all over the state told @lauracmorel that the numbers are fueled by people who leave their guns in unlocked cars.

4/ In Jacksonville, 1,046 guns were stolen like this in two years.

5/ By definition, stolen guns end up in the hands of criminals.

It’s a thriving supply chain – one with deadly consequences.

6/ A Glock semiautomatic was stolen from an unlocked car in Jacksonville. Four months later, it was used to kill a police officer.

7/ If the Jacksonville car was locked, Officer Charles Kondek’s father said, “the odds are my son might still be alive now.”

8/ Meanwhile, police have embarked on a rigorous campaign to stop thefts from cars – including locking some #Florida residents’ doors *for them.*

9/ Local governments can’t do anything about the issue. A 1987 Florida law bars them from creating gun restrictions. More than 40 states have similar laws.

10/ As a result of our reporting, one Florida politician wants to change things.

11/ Gun rights advocates say gun owners shouldn’t be blamed for being the victims of a crime themselves.

12/ Our investigation discovered another major source of black market firearms: Gun store heists.

The number quadrupled in Florida from 2012 to 2016. revealnews.org/article/thieve…

13/ Criminals are brazen: they’ve hammered holes into walls and crashed pickup trucks into glass storefronts.

You can watch it happen, thanks to surveillance footage: revealnews.org/article/thieve…

14/ Some gun store owners make it easy: They don’t lock down their guns at night. All thieves have to do is break through glass and they have access to scores of firearms.

15/ Here's a snapshot of how common these burglaries have become – and how many guns can be stolen.

16/ A handful of states have security laws for gun dealers. Florida isn’t one of them.

17/ With no laws, security varies depending on the gun store. One gun shop owner glued a broken door lock to his front door and didn’t have security cameras.

18/ Many gun store owners who have been robbed are contrite and say they’ve learned their lesson.

19/ If there’s going to be any change, something is going to have to change.

Florida hasn’t passed any gun storage-related legislation since 1989.

Here's the video footage: