According to Miami journalist Andy Slater, Hassan Whiteside's $50,000 assault rifle was stolen from his car when he was outside the Miami gun dealership where he'd purchased the firearm only moments earlier.
According to police documents obtained by Slater, in early July of this year Whiteside bought a Colt M16 assault rifle, ammo, a rifle bag and a silencer at Johnson's Firearms in Miami. The Miami Heat center has previously posted videos of himself shooting assault rifles, which are still legal in Florida and elsewhere.
Immediately after making the purchase, Whiteside drove to the University of Miami campus for a workout. He left his reported $400,000 Rolls Royce unlocked as he practiced.
When he woke up the next day, Whiteside discovered the rifle bag and gun were missing and immediately went to the police. He informed detectives of his movements the day of the robbery, when he went to the gun store, The U's campus, and his Miami Beach home. Originally, police suspected the gun was swiped when he left it in his unlocked Rolls Royce.
However, surveillance footage reviewed by Coral Gables police revealed Whiteside was the only one on campus that day to enter his unlocked car. Two weeks later, Whiteside remembered that he'd left the gun and gear in the Rolls when he went back into the gun store. Again, it had been unlocked. Police figured that's where it had been stolen. Two weeks later, the gun and ammo were recovered in a stolen vehicle, and later the silencer was found.
On Thursday, Whiteside released a statement about the story: "I have a license for the gun that was stolen from me over the summer. I should have secured it better and I’m glad it was recovered. It won’t happen again. It is now locked in a safe and I only use it at the gun range."
