A small cache of stolen military weapons was returned to its Army Reserve base after a homeless man rummaging for recyclables discovered a trash bag loaded with the iron in a Bronx park and alerted police, according to reports.
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The NYPD said the 51-year-old homeless man was collecting cans at Mullaly Park, across from Yankee Stadium, when he found a black garbage bag with three guns inside about 9 a.m. Friday.
James Morales was arrested in Westbury on Wednesday in connection to the theft.
Morales allegedly stole 6 M4 rifles and 10 M11 handguns from the armory by breaking a window and cutting a hole through a vault.
A NY judge has ordered a man accused of an armory theft in Worcester to stand federal weapons charges in MA.
DNA evidence from inside the armory matched that of Morales who most recently faced charges in May of child rape and indecent assault on a child under 14 years old in Cambridge.
Though the crime happened when the country was on edge following the Paris terrorist attacks, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said that there was “no indication” that the thefts were connected to terrorism, according to The Boston Globe.
Last week, a break-in was reported at the Lincoln Stoddard U.S. Army Reserve Center.
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It remains unclear whether authorities recovered the stolen firearms.
