Thief cuts hole in the wall of California gun store, steals more than 50 pistols

A thief chopped a hole in the wall of a California gun store and made off with more than 50 pistols during a midnight sortie earlier this week — and now local cops and federal authorities are hunting for the suspect.

The unidentified burglar hit Foothill Firearms, a strip-mall gun shop in Newcastle, at about 1:20 a.m. on Monday, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office told KCRA 3 in Sacramento.

The burglar took just under three hours to finish the hole, getting inside at about 4 a.m., the network said. Then they grabbed scores of handguns, stuffed them into two Duffel bags and took off in a car.

The thief — who was caught on camera during the burglary — set off the alarm system as they left, which brought the cops, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Police didn’t describe the suspect or the car they drove, however.

One of the gun shop owners told the station they hope the store’s 17-camera surveillance system helps investigators — which now includes members of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives — nab the suspect.

“This is a difficult investigation — it was done late at night, there weren’t any witnesses around this area,” Elise Soviar, the Sheriff’s Office spokesperson, told the station.

“So we’re going back through, we’re reviewing surveillance footage.”

“It’s certainly disappointing. This is a family business. They serve the community here,” she continued. “For something like this to happen to them is disheartening. You know, this is their livelihood.”

“They’ve done nothing wrong. They’ve taken great steps to secure this location. And they were still able to get in.”

The stolen guns have been added to a registry — so if anyone uses one, it can be traced back to the burglary, the network said.