Arizona attorney general sues owner of defunct Tucson gun store

Attorney General Mark Brnovich said his office filed a consumer fraud lawsuit against John Thomas Rompel Jr. and his business, Black Weapons Armory, which was located in the 5600 block of East Broadway.

The complaint alleges Black Weapons Armory, which no longer is in business, and Rompel took payments for firearms and failed to deliver those firearms to consumers, states a news release.

“Arizonans have a right to bear arms, but this gun store collected money and left its customers’ arms bare,” said Brnovich last week.

“Consumers trusted this business to deliver the goods and services they purchased. Our intent in filing this lawsuit is to help these consumers get their hard-earned money back,” Brnovich said.

In January 2015, Brnovich said his office received 15 complaints after the retailer closed.

Consumers claimed they paid for firearms or gun parts that were never ordered or received.

The retailer falsely told customers the delay in receiving firearms was because of a manufacturing delay, states the release.

The lawsuit is seeking that Rompel repay all customers who did not receive their guns or other merchandise, that he no longer operate a business in Arizona that sells firearms, and also that he pay a $10,000 civil penalty to the state for each violation of the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act.