In November, a man who pleaded guilty on Tuesday was involved in a scheme to steal 123 handguns. Darnell Bishop and his accomplice, Dontrell Nance, kidnapped the manager of a Michigan sporting goods store and threatened him at gunpoint to reveal how to turn off the alarm. According to U.S. Attorney Mark Totten, Bishop’s crimes were brazen and would have flooded the streets of Benton Harbor and beyond with illegal firearms if successful.
Bishop confessed that he and his brother handcuffed and blindfolded the manager of Benton Harbor Dunham’s Sports at the victim’s home. They forced the manager to reveal how to disable the alarm system. Bishop then went to the store and stole two coolers, sunglasses, and the 123 guns while his accomplice stayed with the Dunham’s manager in a car. Store video footage of the theft was used as evidence in the case.
Both Bishop and Nance pleaded guilty to charges of kidnapping and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. They face possible life in prison as a result of their crimes. One of the men was identified by investigators after he attempted to transfer money from the manager’s bank account using a cash app. The stolen guns were valued at over $100,000, according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, but they have since been recovered.
