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Date: 8/18/2022
AGAWAM – There was no danger to the public, Agawam Police said, as officers were observed removing dozens of guns from a Cooper Street residence on Aug. 10.
Police said the matter is under investigation and declined to comment further, however.
Around 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 10, there were six police vehicles –four marked and two unmarked – gathered at 677 Cooper St., Agawam. A reporter from Reminder Publishing saw officers carrying guns from the house in canvas holsters and cardboard boxes which looked to be approximately the length and width of an average hunting rifle, and loading them into the backs of at least two Ford Interceptor police cruisers.
A statement issued by the department makes no mention of the seizure, which apparently began when an officer responding to a request for service made by someone at the address “encountered a situation that require[s] further investigation.”
“This probe does not involve personal injury or death, and the broader public is not in danger. This is an ongoing investigation, and there are no further details available at this time,” the police said in a prepared statement.
Police Lt. Dan Bonafilia was one of the officers present. When asked about the guns, Bonfillia described them as “mostly antiques,” but later would not confirm that they were guns. Bonfilia and other officers declined any additional comment due to the ongoing nature of the investigation.
The person answering a telephone call to a number associated with the owner of the home – as identified by a neighbor and several online databases – refused to answer any questions, and did not respond to a message seeking comment.
Agawam Police told The Reminder on Aug. 11 that no arrests had been made in connection with this investigation.
Mike Harris, from the Gun Owners’ Action League in Massachusetts, said that there is no limit to the number of firearms an individual may own, but the quantity of ammunition that may be stored at a residence is subject to regulation under Massachusetts fire codes.
Agawam Police Sgt. Christopher Soto said details of the incident would not be available through a public records request, citing a records law exemption that deals with firearm and concealed carry licenses.