The woman standing at the counter of J & K Sporting Goods in December 2022 is identified by a federal agent as Paige Garrison, 18, who pleaded not guilty Tuesday in federal court to a felony charge of possession of stolen firearms from the store. Screenshot from federal court documents
PORTLAND — A Lisbon woman denied Tuesday that she had possessed stolen handguns from a burglary of a gun shop in West Paris last year.
Authorities said roughly 10 handguns were stolen from J & K Sporting Goods at 112 Bethel Road shortly before 12:30 a.m. Dec. 8, 2022.
An affidavit filed in U.S. District Court by Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent Christopher Concannon showed black-and-white surveillance camera photos of two people in a store examining guns lining one of the walls. The same document shows a color photo of a woman at the checkout counter of what appears to be the same store.
The woman is identified as Paige Garrison, 18, who pleaded not guilty in federal court Tuesday to a felony charge of possession of stolen firearms, a crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
In the affidavit, Concannon wrote that the owner of the gun shop told him he had an “unusual encounter” the day before the burglary with a woman who had “multicolored hair” who had asked him about swords.
Concannon wrote that, in his experience investigating burglaries and thefts of stores, suspects often enter the store in advance in an effort to familiarize themselves with the layout of the stores in order to plan the burglaries, identify items to steal, locate surveillance cameras and “identify other security measures.”
Nearly a month after the burglary, ATF and the firearms industry offered a $5,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest of a suspect or suspects.
Through his investigation, Concannon wrote that he had learned about two juveniles who had stolen guns from the shop and Concannon had gotten information about social media accounts used by one of the juveniles.
A photo in court documents shows a woman identified as Paige Garrison of Lisbon holding handguns, at least one of which a federal agent claims was stolen from a West Paris gun shop in December. Garrison pleaded not guilty to a related felony charge Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Portland. Screenshot from court documents screenshot from court documents
U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Karen F. Wolf, who accepted Garrison’s plea Tuesday, had issued a warrant allowing Concannon to search information associated with Garrison’s social media account.
“Images and video stored as “memories” in Garrison’s (social media) account on Dec. 7, 2022, around 8:30 p.m. to 9:05 p.m., showed Garrison, Juvenile 1, an individual similar in appearance to Juvenile 2, and a third juvenile (Juvenile 3,) and others. Based on my review of these images and videos, I believe that Garrison, Juvenile 1, Juvenile 2, and Juvenile 3 were together at the same location on the evening before the burglary at the gun shop,” Concannon wrote.
“Garrison’s (social media) account sent a video/audio message to a (social media) account utilized by Juvenile 1. The video showed Juvenile 1 inside a vehicle with what appeared to be a Glock pistol on his lap and (a) second Glock pistol protruding from his pocket. The pistols were similar in appearance to some of (the) firearms stolen from the gun shop. Additionally, the pistol on Juvenile 1’s lap appeared to have white thread wrapped around the trigger guard, consistent with a price tag having been affixed to it,” Concannon wrote.
The video showed other handguns similar in appearance to those stolen from the shop, he wrote.
“The video also captured a partial face view of a white female with multicolored hair and black-rimmed glasses inside the vehicle. I recognized the female as being similar in appearance to Garrison,” Concannon wrote.
Photos taken over the next couple of days that were found in Garrison’s social media account included more images of juveniles with guns that match those stolen from the shop and at least one shows one of the juveniles with what appears to be a stolen gun in his waistband. Photos stored in Garrison’s social media account for two days in late December included images “showing Garrison with Juvenile 1, and Juvenile 1 possessing firearms,” Concannon wrote.
He interviewed Garrison at her Lisbon home in February about the burglary, he wrote.
She said she was friends with two of the juveniles and a third who had the same name as the person identified by Concannon.
Garrison said she had gone to the shop to buy a sword for one of the juveniles for Christmas.
She denied having knowledge of who was involved in the burglary, Concannon wrote.
Garrison “denied having filmed a video inside her vehicle with firearms and her friends,” he wrote. Shown an image of part of her face, Garrison denied she was the person in the photo, Concannon wrote.
Concannon seized her cellphone before leaving, then returned with a receipt that he gave to her father.
Her father told Concannon that he confronted Garrison and she acknowledged having driven multiple kids back to the area around the store. Her father indicated that his daughter had denied having knowledge of the juveniles planning to burglarize the store. The father told Concannon that his daughter “indicated that the kids returned to her vehicle and she saw what they had, although she did not specifically say firearms. He said Garrison was scared to talk to me without a lawyer.”
A search of Garrison’s cellphone turned up multiple photos and videos of Garrison (and others) “in possession of firearms that I recognized to be consistent with some of the firearms stolen from the gun shop.
Garrison’s phone also contained images and messages which indicated that Garrison, Juvenile 1, Juvenile 2, Juvenile 3, and others were together on the evening of Dec. 7, 2022, prior to the burglary at the gun shop,” Concannon wrote.
Video on her phone shows she and the three juveniles with some of the stolen guns in a car shortly after the burglary, he wrote.
Later on the day of the burglary, her cellphone was used to search the internet for “Undercover Charter Arms,” which Concannon wrote is consistent with the manufacturer name of one of the stolen firearms. The phone data also showed that on that same day, Garrison’s phone was used to search the internet for “(h)ow to identify a (g)un (m)odel.”
Some of the videos found on Garrison’s phone showed her holding handguns with serial numbers showing that match those of some of the stolen firearms, Concannon wrote.
Images on her phone included one showing her holding three handguns to the underside of her chin. The serial numbers of two of the guns are visible, at least one matching that of one of the stolen guns. Another image appears to have been taken in the same location and shows her holding two pistols to her head, at least one of them having the same serial number as one of the stolen guns, Concannon wrote.
Garrison is not in custody, but must abide by conditions of supervised release that include no contact with any co-defendants or witnesses and she must stay away from the gun shop.
Garrison must not have any firearms and she is barred from having any alcohol or illegal drugs for which she may be tested.
Michael Whipple, Garrison’s court-appointed attorney, released a written statement after Tuesday’s court hearing, saying, “Paige Garrison is an absolutely fabulous young woman who got caught up with the wrong people at the wrong time.”
A trial is scheduled for October.
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