{"id":1952583,"date":"2023-06-21T00:54:02","date_gmt":"2023-06-21T04:54:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/montana-firearms-dealer-sticks-to-his-guns-reopens-business-after-irs-raid\/"},"modified":"2023-06-21T00:56:39","modified_gmt":"2023-06-21T04:56:39","slug":"montana-firearms-dealer-sticks-to-his-guns-reopens-business-after-irs-raid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/montana-firearms-dealer-sticks-to-his-guns-reopens-business-after-irs-raid\/","title":{"rendered":"Montana gun dealer reopens after IRS raid, stands firm."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmontana-firearms-dealer-sticks-to-his-guns-reopens-business-after-irs-raid%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1952583&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"post_content\">\n<h2>Gun Shop Raided by Heavily Armed IRS Agents<\/h2>\n<p>In a shocking turn of events, a small gun shop in Grand Falls, Montana, was raided by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/arrest-of-catholic-pro-life-speaker-a-new-low-for-justice-department-attorney\/\" title=\"Arrest of Catholic Pro-Life Speaker A \u2018New Low\u2019 for Justice Department: Attorney\">20 heavily armed agents<\/a> from the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI). The shop, Highwood Creek Outfitters, was searched for 10 hours on June 14, with agents seizing thousands of documents containing private customer information.<\/p>\n<p>Owner Tom Van Hoose was taken aback when he arrived at the store to find IRS agents carrying semi-automatic rifles and dressed in full tactical gear. He expressed his confusion over the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cops-blasted-for-letting-gabby-petitos-boyfriend-disappear-as-body-possibly-found-in-wyoming\/\" title=\"Cops Blasted For Letting Gabby Petito\u2019s Boyfriend Disappear As Body Possibly Found In Wyoming\">federal search warrant<\/a>, which stated that he was under financial investigation by the IRS-CI.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThey somehow think a small mom-and-pop gun shop makes enough money to justify 20 heavily armed agents,\u201d Van Hoose said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is no justification for what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>During the raid, the agents confiscated financial records and over 12,000 individual firearms transactions spanning 13 years of business. These records, which filled more than 20 boxes, were a significant portion of the documents seized.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike larger gun retailers, Highwood Creek Outfitters keeps physical copies of Firearms Transaction Records, ATF Form 4473, for the duration of the business. These forms contain vital information about buyers, including their name, address, and photo ID.<\/p>\n<p>Van Hoose emphasized that these records are not financial in nature and should not be in the possession of the IRS. They are only disclosed if a firearm is involved in a criminal incident.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5346039\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/06\/21\/id5346039-20230620_140645-1200x900.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a><br \/>\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/06\/21\/id5346039-20230620_140645-1200x900.jpg\" alt=\"Highwood Creek Outfitters owner Tom Van Hoose on June 20, 2023, nearly a week after the IRS raided his business on June 14. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)\"><br \/>\n  <\/figure>\n<h2>Under Surveillance<\/h2>\n<p>Van Hoose revealed that his gun store had been under surveillance for the past two years. An unidentified FBI agent had been taking photographs outside the shop, raising concerns about a potential robbery.<\/p>\n<p>Local police were called, and the agent was instructed to show identification or face consequences.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cNobody knew this guy,\u201d Van Hoose said. He later discovered that his business was on a Department of Homeland Security domestic terrorism watchlist.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t know why,\u201d he added. \u201cThe level of harassment just continues to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Highwood Creek Outfitters specializes in selling firearms that many larger stores refuse to carry. Van Hoose believes this may have attracted attention from those with differing political perspectives.<\/p>\n<p>Gun Owners of America (GOA) expressed concern over the seizure of firearm transaction records, especially considering the existing database maintained by the ATF.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018Weaponized\u2019 Federal Government<\/h2>\n<p>GOA Senior Vice President Erich Pratt condemned the raid, highlighting the IRS&#8217;s history of targeting conservatives.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThis continued weaponization by the Biden Administration of federal agencies to go after their political opponents once again underscores the dire need for Congress to act, including defunding the ATF [Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms] and demanding answers from the IRS,\u201d Pratt stated.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>U.S. Congressman Matthew Rosendale (R-Mont.) also criticized the IRS action, describing it as an example of President Biden weaponizing federal agencies to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/montana-firearms-dealer-sticks-to-his-guns-reopens-business-after-irs-raid\/\" title=\"Montana gun dealer reopens after IRS raid, stands firm.\">harass law-abiding citizens exercising<\/a> their constitutional rights.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5346019\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/06\/21\/id5346019-20230620_1408130-1200x900.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a><br \/>\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/06\/21\/id5346019-20230620_1408130-1200x900.jpg\" alt=\"Tom Van Hoose, owner of Highwood Creek Outfitters in Grand Falls, Mont., shows a pair of semi-automatic handguns on June 20, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)\"><br \/>\n  <\/figure>\n<p>As more details about the raid emerge, the public awaits an explanation for this alarming incident and the rationale behind targeting a small gun shop.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Montana gun shop in Grand Falls is operational again following a raid by 20 heavily armed IRS agents. On June 14, the agents seized numerous documents with private customer information. Tom Van Hoose, owner of Highwood Creek Outfitters, confirmed the involvement of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":294,"featured_media":1952584,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[6682,5246,7012,8362,8605,7952,5289,6990],"class_list":["post-1952583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times","tag-dealer","tag-firm","tag-gun","tag-irs","tag-montana","tag-raid","tag-reopens","tag-stands"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1952583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/294"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1952583"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1952583\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1952584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1952583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1952583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1952583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}