A Newton, Alabama, gun shop was the target for a smash and grab early Tuesday morning, but Gerald Harden, the shop owner, believes it was a planned out burglary with the suspect specifically after Glock handguns.

Harden, who has owned Harden’s Gun Shop for 40 years and never had any problems in the past, said he was awakened around 4 a.m. when the security alarm was activated. Harden arrived at the shop to find a truck, which authorities later learned was stolen, had been rammed through the front door, completely knocking it off of the hinges. Inside, shattered glass littered the floor and several handguns were missing.

However, Harden noted that although he has numerous guns in stock that retail for several thousand dollars, the suspect, who was wearing a hoodie over his head, skipped right over those and went straight for the Glocks. Harden wonders if the handguns were already pre-sold before the burglary took place.

“I’ve never had anything like this to happen,” Harden said.

But Dale County Sheriff Wally Olson said they’ve seen a recent uptick in break-ins and burglaries in the area.

“You want to try to keep everyone safe, and you want to help people because they don’t need to live in fear,” Olson said.

“It’s a sad sad thing that people have to do these things,” said Harden, who hopes to reopen his shop by the end of the week.

[ WTVY ]