KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An alert employee at a Blue Springs gun retailer prevented a man previously charged with driving into a Black Lives Matter protest in 2020 from obtaining an AR-15.
Jackson County prosecutors charged Beau Albauer, 31, on Tuesday with one count of fraudulent purchase of a firearm following the incident on Sunday, June 22, in Blue Springs.
On June 29, Blue Springs police were sent to the retailer’s store, where the owner of the store told a detective about an incident in which a suspicious person attempted to purchase an assault rifle.
Detectives spoke to the employee, who said the person, identified as Albauer, entered the store asking for a cheap firearm.
The employee said Albauer initially looked at an AR-10 but was disappointed with the capacity of the magazine. Albauer then started looking at an AR-15, but he was unhappy that the one available was partially pink in color.
The employee said Albauer presented a Mississippi driver’s license and a Missouri fishing permit. Albauer told the employee the fishing permit did not have his current address in Grandview.
The employee told police he denied the sale of the firearm to Albauer because of the address discrepancies.
Albauer allegedly returned to the store later with an updated fishing permit with his current address. The employee said he once again denied the sale, citing Albauer’s search for the cheapest gun, selecting a pink AR-15 and wanting a higher magazine count.
In the process of attempting to purchase the firearm, Albauer filled out required paperwork, including ATF Form 4473.
The form asks the applicant if they have ever been “convicted in any court, including a military court, of a felony, or any other crime for which the judge could have imprisoned you for more than one year, even if you received a shorter sentence including probation.” Albauer marked “no” on the form.
At some point during the attempted purchase, employees at the store conducted an internet search for Albauer, which revealed he was arrested for driving into the crowd of a Black Lives Matter protest in 2020 in Memphis, Tennessee.
He was charged with felony reckless driving and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon. Court documents indicate Albauer was convicted of the charges on Nov. 29, 2022.
Due to his felony conviction, police allege Albauer violated Missouri statutes by incorrectly filing out Form 4473.
Online court records indicate Albauer was set to make his initial appearance before a Jackson County Circuit Court judge on Wednesday afternoon. He is being held on a $35,000 bond.
—
If you have any information about a crime, you may contact your local police department directly. But if you want or need to remain anonymous, you should contact the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline by calling 816-474-TIPS (8477), submitting the tip online or through the free mobile app at P3Tips.com. Depending on your tip, Crime Stoppers could offer you a cash reward.
Annual homicide details and data for the Kansas City area are available through the KSHB 41 News Homicide Tracker, which was launched in 2015. Read the KSHB 41 News Mug Shot Policy.
