TODAY'S TMJ4

Va. Gunman Bought Weapon from Green Bay

By Jenn Rourke

GREEN BAY - The pawnbroker who transferred a gun to the Virginia Tech shooter said he didn't notice anything unusual about Cho Seung-Hui.

Cho purchased a Walther P-22 semi-automatic pistol from a Green Bay dealer via the Internet. But under Virginia law, the gun had to be sent to a licensed firearm dealer in Virginia. That store must then perform a background check before allowing the buyer to pick up the weapon.

Watch the raw interview with GunSource owner Eric Thompson

Read the gun dealer's statement

Eric Thompson, owner of TheGunSource.com said the ATF agents who came to interview him were friendly and non-threatening. He said everyone is "on the same page" in terms of keeping people safe and following the letter of the law.

He said Cho sent an email with two questions. “What they were basically was just asking a little bit more detail about the firearm and how new it was," Thompson said. "The second question was about where he would like us to send it."

TEXT OF EMAILS FROM VA TECH SHOOTER TO THEGUNSOURCE.COM IN GREEN BAY:

“IS WALTHER P22, PRODUCT 10632, SECOND GENERATION? WHAT YEAR WAS THE ASSEMBLY DATE?”

“THE DEALER THAT I CHOSE DON'T FAX THEIR FFL, THEY ONLY MAIL IT, SO I THINK I WANT MY ORDER PUT ON HOLD & SEE IF I CAN FIND ANOTHER DEALER.”

Thompson said that when he sends out a firearm he has to send it to a federally licensed dealer, to comply with all state and federal laws.

“We sell about 400 weapons a month at this point right now, and it is 100 percent legal," he said. "We never ship guns directly to a customer."

Thompson said Cho ordered the weapon on Feb. 2, and GunSource shipped it out on Feb. 5. Thompson said the dealer in Virginia received it on Feb. 8.

"It’s just absolutely tragic. I’ve got three small children myself, and I can’t even fathom something like this happening," Thompson said. "And it’s just an unbelievable tragedy."

Thompson said his employees are in a state of disbelief. "What are the chances? There’s over 100,000 federally licensed dealers in the United States and although we’re one of the fewer companies that actually does sell weapons and make them available for sale on the Internet, what are the chances that it’s my company?" Thompson wondered.

Cho picked up the gun from JND Pawnbrokers in Blacksburg on Feb. 9.

Just five weeks ago, he bought Glock 19 9mm and 50 rounds of ammunition from a gun store in Roanoke.

The owner of that store also said he didn't see any cause for alarm.