Man Accused Of Acquiring Guns For New Hope Police Shooter Released
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The man arrested for helping a mentally unstable man get a gun is now out of jail.
Michael Garant, 42, is accused of purchasing three shotguns and illegally giving them to Raymond Kmetz -- who used one of the guns to shoot two police officers inside New Hope City Hall Monday night.
He couldn't legally own a gun because of a history with mental illness.
"It just sickens you," Full Metal Gun Shop co-owner Troy Buchholz said. "That there are people out there who will actually do things like that, knowingly buy a firearm under their name and pass it to someone else."
Buchholz says Garant came into his Princeton gun shop to pick up three shotguns on Aug. 23. He didn't think twice that his ID didn't match the name used online to purchase the guns, "Raymond Kmetz."
"I see it all the time," he said. "People get their bidding numbers turned off, they sign up with a new name and a new Yahoo email account or something to become a bidder so that they can buy things."
While Kmetz had made the purchase over the internet, Buchholz says Garant told him he was purchasing the guns for himself.
"He filled out the paperwork, he flew through with flying colors, it was a, you know, legal transaction," Buchholz said.
Garant's background check was clear. He walked away with the guns, one of which would be used to shoot two police officers by Kmetz.
It's a hard pill for Buchholz to swallow as his mother-in-law once served as a reserve for New Hope Police.
He says going forward, he won't allow customers to buy guns if the in-person ID is different than the name used online.
"I don't ever want to see this kind of situation ever happen again," Buchholz said.
The Hennepin County Attorney's office says Garant was let go because there wasn't enough evidence to press state charges at this time. He could still face federal charges.
