Grants Pass, Ore. — A 74-year-old Grants Pass man will spend the next 18 months in prison after stealing 43 firearms from the Grants Pass Department of Public Safety’s evidence facility.
Lee Darrow was once a firefighter with the department. After retiring he took on volunteering, assessing the value of firearms in their evidence facility. After one of those guns went missing an audit unraveled a huge criminal case.
“He was an avid lover of firearms, and the fact that the city was wanting to either destroy the firearms or auction the firearms he found it very easy to take them,” Josephine County Deputy District Attorney Chief Lisa Turner said.
An Oregon State Police investigation found Darrow had stolen 43 guns over the period of two years. A judge handed down his sentence Tuesday. He’ll serve 18 months in prison followed by one year of post prison supervision. He will also pay the department $2,659.60 in restitution.
According to Turner, Darrow never sold any of the guns. He either kept them for himself or gave them away to family members or friends.
Grants Pass Department of Public Safety Chief Bill Landis calls the crime an abuse of trust.
“You can do your due diligence doing background checks, but unfortunately people can still make bad choices which affect departments such as ours,” Landis said.
He also said the effects of Darrow’s actions go far beyond their department with the whole criminal justice system taking a hit when the integrity of evidence is compromised. Chief Landis said the department no longer allows volunteers to work in the evidence facility. They’ve also installed electronic key cards and security cameras to keep an eye on what’s happening inside the building.
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