Casper Gun Thief Gets Six-Year Prison Sentence

James Steidl, ThinkStock

A Casper man on Monday was sentenced to six years in prison for stealing two pistols from a pawn shop in April, according to federal court records.

Shannon Christopher Mares, who was 27 when arrested, heard the sentence from U.S. District Court Judge Nancy Freudenthal during a 26-minute hearing in Cheyenne.

Besides the prison term, Freudenthal ordered Mares to pay a $200 assessment, $1,300 in restitution, and serve three years of supervised release after his release from custody.

In July, he pleaded guilty to stealing firearms from a federal firearm licensee and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to the minutes of the sentencing.

The case began on April 30 when a Casper police officer contacted a U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent about two guns stolen from Depend-A-Pawn, 1023 E. Second St., according to the affidavit accompanying the charging document.

The day before, a worker at the store was showing the guns to a customer. The worker was talking to a co-worker and the suspect grabbed two guns -- a Sig Sauer and a Baretta -- and fled.

He ran east in the parking lot, looped west, ran around the building and then south to an alley. One witness said the suspect "looked confused' and entered a black vehicle and drove south on McKinley Street.

Surveillance video from the store showed the suspect taking the guns and running.

Mares was on parole for aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.

He was arrested on May 6.