A man out on bail on a child rape charge has been arrested by the FBI in New York in connection with the theft of 16 guns from a Massachusetts Army Reserve armory.
According to an FBI affidavit, James Morales was arrested Wednesday in a Long Island parking lot for allegedly stealing six M4 rifles and 10 Sig Sauer M11 handguns from the Lincoln Army Reserve Center in Worcester last weekend.
The FBI affidavit says Morales was tied to the theft through DNA evidence and through an electronic monitoring bracelet that he is wearing because he is out on bail on the child rape charge. Morales had been a member of the Army Reserve but was discharged after the rape allegations in May.
According to the criminal complaint, Morales allegedly broke through a kitchen window at the armory and then used a power saw to cut through the roof of the storage container to reach the weapons.
The FBI had a surveillance image of Morales standing next to his car outside the armory, authorities say, and tracked his cellphone to Long Island.
Morales is set to appear in federal court on Friday for an extradition hearing. It could not immediately be determined if he has a lawyer.
The FBI has said that the theft is not terrorism related.
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Michael Kisver, who lives in Jericho, said regardless of the intent, the theft clearly shows a need to step up security at the armory.
"It shows how lax security is," Kisver said. "How could he get into a facility and steal all those weapons?"
