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Man found in garden shed with machine gun and $20K
By Julie Manganis , Staff writer
Salem News
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BEVERLY - A Beverly man whose gun license was suspended last month after a domestic dispute with his wife was arrested early yesterday after a MAC-10 assault weapon and $20,000 in cash was found hidden in a garden shed at his former home.
John Orlowski, 48, of 15 Dearborn Ave. had been ordered to turn over all of his weapons to police last month, after a judge issued a domestic restraining order.
He is now being held without bail, after pleading not guilty in Salem District Court to charges that include illegal possession of a machine gun, possession of burglarious tools and violating a restraining order.
On Jan. 3, police suspended his gun license and pulled 121 guns from his home - a gun collection so large Orlowski advised them to bring a truck, according to a police report. Among the weapons seized were handguns, rifles, shotguns and an Uzi, many of them improperly stored in large, plastic storage boxes around the house.
But Orlowski apparently did not turn over all of his weapons. When he was arrested later and charged with violating the restraining order, he allegedly told police he'd stashed a .357 handgun in his parents' slow cooker and was carrying a 9 mm Ruger.
And late on Tuesday night, in another alleged violation of the restraining order, Orlowski slipped into his estranged wife's backyard.
Prosecutor Connaught O'Connor said yesterday Orlowski's wife called police after seeing him walking around in the yard with a flashlight.
When police arrived, they found him in a garden shed that had been forced open, O'Connor said. Orlowski told police he was trying to retrieve a bag from the shed - a bag police later discovered contained $20,000 in cash, money Orlowski contends was loaned to him by his father.
After Orlowski was arrested on charges of violating the restraining order and possession of marijuana and lock-picking equipment, his estranged wife called the station to report finding the MAC-10, a machine pistol, in another bag in the shed.
Police went back to the Bridge Street home and confiscated the gun, which Orlowski had allegedly failed to turn over back in January.
Defense lawyer Sierra Rosen argued police can't prove the gun found in the shed was Orlowski's, saying "nothing links him to the gun in this case."
But Judge Richard Mori appeared skeptical, noting Orlowski was prowling in a garden shed late at night in violation of a court order.
"There's no indication he was looking for this gun," Rosen argued, saying Orlowski was simply trying to get the money.
And she argued there was no violence in the incident.
But Mori said he "can't think of any situation where a person would be more in fear" than to find a person wandering around their property late at night.
"You've got to obey court orders," Mori told Orlowski, pointing out this is his third alleged violation of a court order. The judge revoked his bail in the earlier restraining order violation.
When police seized the guns in January, they also found prescription drugs, including Vicodin, inside one gun case.
It also appears Orlowski, who told police he is being treated for depression, had lost count of the number of weapons he owned, initially telling police there were 75 guns.
Orlowski will remain held without bail for at least 60 days. He's due back in court on March 7.
In an unusual move, the divorce lawyer for Orlowski's wife appeared in court yesterday asking the judge to let him, and not the prosecutor, argue the issue of bail. While Mori denied Anthony Adamopoulos's request to argue, he did allow the lawyer to file a motion seeking to have the $20,000 in cash placed in an escrow account, because Orlowski's wife considers the money a marital asset she's entitled to split.
http://www.salemnews.com/punews/local_story_046120948?page=0
By Julie Manganis , Staff writer
Salem News
View as a multiple pages
BEVERLY - A Beverly man whose gun license was suspended last month after a domestic dispute with his wife was arrested early yesterday after a MAC-10 assault weapon and $20,000 in cash was found hidden in a garden shed at his former home.
John Orlowski, 48, of 15 Dearborn Ave. had been ordered to turn over all of his weapons to police last month, after a judge issued a domestic restraining order.
He is now being held without bail, after pleading not guilty in Salem District Court to charges that include illegal possession of a machine gun, possession of burglarious tools and violating a restraining order.
On Jan. 3, police suspended his gun license and pulled 121 guns from his home - a gun collection so large Orlowski advised them to bring a truck, according to a police report. Among the weapons seized were handguns, rifles, shotguns and an Uzi, many of them improperly stored in large, plastic storage boxes around the house.
But Orlowski apparently did not turn over all of his weapons. When he was arrested later and charged with violating the restraining order, he allegedly told police he'd stashed a .357 handgun in his parents' slow cooker and was carrying a 9 mm Ruger.
And late on Tuesday night, in another alleged violation of the restraining order, Orlowski slipped into his estranged wife's backyard.
Prosecutor Connaught O'Connor said yesterday Orlowski's wife called police after seeing him walking around in the yard with a flashlight.
When police arrived, they found him in a garden shed that had been forced open, O'Connor said. Orlowski told police he was trying to retrieve a bag from the shed - a bag police later discovered contained $20,000 in cash, money Orlowski contends was loaned to him by his father.
After Orlowski was arrested on charges of violating the restraining order and possession of marijuana and lock-picking equipment, his estranged wife called the station to report finding the MAC-10, a machine pistol, in another bag in the shed.
Police went back to the Bridge Street home and confiscated the gun, which Orlowski had allegedly failed to turn over back in January.
Defense lawyer Sierra Rosen argued police can't prove the gun found in the shed was Orlowski's, saying "nothing links him to the gun in this case."
But Judge Richard Mori appeared skeptical, noting Orlowski was prowling in a garden shed late at night in violation of a court order.
"There's no indication he was looking for this gun," Rosen argued, saying Orlowski was simply trying to get the money.
And she argued there was no violence in the incident.
But Mori said he "can't think of any situation where a person would be more in fear" than to find a person wandering around their property late at night.
"You've got to obey court orders," Mori told Orlowski, pointing out this is his third alleged violation of a court order. The judge revoked his bail in the earlier restraining order violation.
When police seized the guns in January, they also found prescription drugs, including Vicodin, inside one gun case.
It also appears Orlowski, who told police he is being treated for depression, had lost count of the number of weapons he owned, initially telling police there were 75 guns.
Orlowski will remain held without bail for at least 60 days. He's due back in court on March 7.
In an unusual move, the divorce lawyer for Orlowski's wife appeared in court yesterday asking the judge to let him, and not the prosecutor, argue the issue of bail. While Mori denied Anthony Adamopoulos's request to argue, he did allow the lawyer to file a motion seeking to have the $20,000 in cash placed in an escrow account, because Orlowski's wife considers the money a marital asset she's entitled to split.
http://www.salemnews.com/punews/local_story_046120948?page=0