Charges filed in Myerstown gun store burglary; all 4 stolen handguns recovered

State police have recovered all four handguns stolen last month from a Myerstown sporting goods store and have added to the charges filed against two men accused in the burglary, the Lebanon County District Attorney’s Office announced.

Zachary Schaeffer, 30, of Lebanon, and Domonic Garcia, 33, of South Lebanon Township, face amended charges in the July 31 break-in at Laucks Sporting Goods at 26 W. Main Ave., according to a news release from District Attorney Pier Hess Graf’s office.

According to court documents, both men remain incarcerated at the Lebanon County Correctional Facility, where they’ve been held since Aug. 7.

Bail for Schaeffer is set at $99,999, lowered from an initial $250,000, while bail for Garcia remains set at the original $250,000.

Garcia’s charges were amended to include burglary and receipt of stolen property, both second-degree felonies.

Troopers amended Schaeffer’s charges to include conspiracy to commit burglary, receipt of stolen property, four counts of altering or obliterating marks of identification on a firearm and conspiracy to commit possession of a firearm with altered identification or manufacturer numbers, all second-degree felonies, along with a second-degree misdemeanor count of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence.

Troopers from the state police barracks in Jonestown responded to the store on July 31 and determined that the intruders broke the store’s glass windows to get inside, then smashed the glass cases holding firearms, the district attorney’s office said. The store owner reported that four handguns were taken: a Heritage Flag .22-caliber revolver, a Ruger 9 mm pistol, and two Hi-Point pistols.

Troopers obtained serial numbers for the missing firearms and canvassed the area for video, according to the release. Working with county detectives, they identified a car linked to Garcia as being in the immediate area at the time of the burglary.

Police used the local SWAT team to execute a search warrant at Garcia’s residence, the release said. Evidence showed the vehicle and Garcia were not home on the night in question. Garcia confessed during an interview to serving as the getaway driver and transporting the others to and from the store, the district attorney’s office said.

Troopers later identified Schaeffer as the second suspect and arrested him, the release said. After being read his Miranda rights, Schaeffer confessed to smashing the store’s windows and glass counters and to reaching in and stealing all four handguns, according to the district attorney’s office.

A search warrant at Schaeffer’s residence turned up no firearms. Troopers developed information showing that Schaeffer had instructed his girlfriend, Aaliyah Everett-Farmer of Dauphin County, to remove the weapons from his home before police searched it, the release said. She retrieved the guns and stored them at her apartment, according to the district attorney’s office.

State police executed a search warrant at the apartment and found all four firearms, the release said. A visual examination showed Schaeffer had attempted to alter and obliterate the serial numbers on all four guns, according to the district attorney’s office, which said Everett-Farmer confessed to her role in hiding the firearms from police.

Court records show that Everett-Farmer was charged with receiving stolen property, tampering with physical evidence, and possessing a firearm with manufacturer number altered. She was released after posting a bond for $75,000 bail and will be arraigned in September, according to court records.

“The dogged efforts the Pennsylvania State Police — particularly the Jonestown Barrack’s Crime Division — is to be highlighted and commended,” Graf said in the release. “The troopers involved identified and arrested their suspects. They made every effort and took every step to locate the missing weapons, fearful they would fall into the hands of criminals and cause more violence in our community.

“Thanks to the troopers involved, those guns are no longer on the street and are in police custody.” The defendants responsible will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”