Gun stores in Missouri reported on Tuesday that they were seeing a spike in sales following the fatal shooting of teen Michael Brown and the ensuing confrontations between police and citizens.
Owner Steve King told the St. Louis Business Journal that his store, Metro Shooting, had seen a 50 percent increase, which he attributed to the violence taking place in Ferguson, a St. Louis suburb.
“We’ve sold a variety of handguns, shotguns and AR-15s (a semi-automatic rifle),” King said. “All of the sales are having to do with home defense. … Lots of people are afraid.”
Al Rothweiler, owner of Mid America Arms, experienced the same influx of customers flocking to his store.
“We were closed Sunday and Monday, but today, sales have been brisk, and the store is full of people,” Rothweiler told the Business Journal. “Everyone who bought today mentioned something about Ferguson.”
