NEAR ST. LOUIS, Mo. — The Colorado shooting suspect, James Holmes, bought tactical gear from an online store based in a St. Louis suburb. The store’s owners say they’re appalled at the news.
The owners of Cat5 say their online business is called tacticalgear.com. The staff found a receipt showing a shipment to a James Holmes of Aurora, Colorado.
“When I heard the news early yesterday morning around 4 a.m., that`s actually one of the first things I thought of, was I hope that wasn`t an order that came through one of our store,” the owner said.
He made a purchase on July 2 for close to $300. He also requested two-day, expedited shipping. The items he bought included a folding knife and gun magazine pouches.
“Our staff is all saddened and outraged,” he said. “I think a lot of people are at a loss for words to crystallize how they feel about such a senseless tragedy.”
Police say Holmes was wearing a tactical, ballistic vest. Tactical means there are places to put all kinds of gear and clips. The vest is also bullet-proof or bullet resistant.
The online store doesn’t sells guns or ammunition. Tacticalgear.com says they do not sell ballistic or bullet proof gear either.
“It`s important to realize we ship thousands of orders every day in support of police and law enforcement and armed forces from here in Maryland Heights all the way to forward deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq,” the owner said. “We play a key role in supporting these everyday heroes with the gear they need to do high risk jobs.”
The owners share a sense of helpless grief along with everyone affected by the shooting. The site’s owner says the tactical gear Holmes bought is made of nylon similar to that used in school back packs.
