Former Army Reservist Arrested in Connection with Worcester Armory Theft

BOSTON – A former Army Reservist has been arrested in New York in connection with the theft of sixteen weapons from a U.S. Army Reserve Center in Worcester, Mass.

James W. Morales, 34, of Cambridge, Mass. was charged in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts with one count of unlawful possession of a machine gun, one count of unlawful possession of stolen firearms and one count of theft of government property.  Morales was arrested in Westbury, New York on Wednesday night after evidence linked him to the crime scene and agents tracked him to Long Island.

It is alleged that on the morning of Nov. 15, 2015, personnel at the U.S. Army Reserve Center on Lake Avenue North in Worcester, Mass. reported a forced entry through the roof of a weapons vault and that sixteen weapons, specifically six M-4 rifles and 10 Sig Sauer M11 9mm pistols, had been stolen.  An investigation revealed that the perpetrator allegedly entered the facility through a kitchen window and then gained access to the inside of the weapons vault by cutting a hole through the vault’s ceiling with a power saw and pry bar.

Blood samples were recovered inside and on the weapons vault at the armory and Morales was subsequently identified as the source.  Further investigation revealed that Morales was on electronic monitoring based on a charge in May 2015 in Middlesex Superior Court for child rape and indecent assault.  Review of the information recorded by Morales’s electronic monitoring bracelet revealed that he arrived at the facility at approximately 6:40 p.m. on Nov. 14, 2015 and was present until 12:08 a.m. the following morning.  The bracelet places Morales directly inside the facility several times during the intervening period.

Each charge provides a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Daniel Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Colonel Richard McKeon, Superintend of the Massachusetts State Police; Chief Gary Gemme of the Worcester Police Department; Boston Police Commissioner William Evans; Acting Police Commissioner Thomas C. Krumpter of the Nassau County Police Department, Mineola, New York; and Sheriff Michael J. Sposato of the Nassau County Sherriff’s Department, East Meadow, New York, made the announcement today.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office would like to acknowledge the cooperation and assistance of U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers’s Office in the Eastern District of New York. 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Grady and Corey Flashner of Ortiz’s Worcester Branch Office.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations.  The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.