Sandusky to trade 1921 Tommy Gun for new guns

SANDUSKY - Say "hello" to the city's little friend. The city is in possession of a 1921 Tommy Gun worth $22,500, a machine gun made popular by Prohibition-era gangsters and Hollywood classics like "The Untouchables" and "Scarface."

Along with other confiscated firearms, the city is trading the Tommy Gun for weapons and equipment for the police department.

In total, the city is exchanging hundreds of guns and ammunition worth $64,400.

"Our current guns are 15 to 18 years old," acting Chief Charlie Sams said. "They have a lot of wear and tear. We decided it was time to turn these things over while they still have value."

The most valuable weapon in the exchange, the Tommy Gun, has been in the department's possession since the 1940s. According to legend, the Sandusky Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives seized several Thompson submachine guns during a raid in the 1940s. The SPD was allowed to keep one. Etchings on the Tommy Gun confirm it was made in Hartford, Conn., in 1921.

At a meeting last month, city commissioner Craig Stahl wondered aloud whether the mint condition gun should be donated to a local museum. But then Sams told him its monetary value.

"Never mind," Stahl said, as everyone laughed. "We'll sell it." Vance's Shooters Supply in Columbus is the buyer. Vance's will give the department $67,650 worth of new weapons and gear in exchange for the Tommy Gun and other used weapons.

Since the new equipment costs slightly more than the old equipment, the city will take $3,250 from the Federal Forfeiture Fund to pay the difference. The money will not come out of the police department's annual budget. Spokesmen from Vance's did not return phone calls seeking comment.

The Thompson submachine gun became famous during Prohibition, when law enforcement officials like Eliot Ness and gangsters like Al Capone chose the Tommy Gun as their weapon of choice. The gun is also known as the Chopper, Chicago Piano and Chicago Typewriter. It was used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as late as 1976, before it was deemed obsolete.

(The Sandusky Register is a FOX Toledo media partner.)