Plummer Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Guns from Dealer

Kyle Eugene Goddard, 28, of Plummer, Idaho, stood before federal prosecutors today and admitted to stealing firearms from a licensed dealer — a brazen crime that cut straight to the heart of Idaho’s gun safety concerns. Goddard pleaded guilty to theft of firearms from a licensed dealer’s inventory and possession of stolen firearms, charges carrying a maximum 10-year prison sentence, $250,000 in fines, and up to three years of supervised release.

The theft occurred on July 23, 2016, when Goddard slipped into Bargain Barn in his hometown of Plummer and walked out with two loaded handguns: a Taurus 709 Slim 9mm and a Springfield Armory XD 40. The weapons were not for sale on the open floor — they were part of the store’s secured dealer inventory, making the crime not just a burglary but a direct breach of federal firearm regulations.

Federal investigators say the theft triggered an immediate multi-agency response. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives led the probe, with critical support from the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The collaboration cut through jurisdictional lines, underscoring the seriousness with which federal authorities treat stolen firearms in Indian Country and beyond.

Goddard was indicted by a federal grand jury in Coeur d’Alene on August 16, 2016, less than a month after the heist. At his plea hearing, he offered no excuses — only a clear acknowledgment of guilt. No accomplices were named, and court documents indicate he acted alone, though investigators are still probing how the guns were stored and whether security failures at the store contributed to the theft.

The case was prosecuted under Idaho’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, a federal initiative aimed at reducing gun violence through aggressive prosecution of illegal firearm possession. U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson, who announced the plea, emphasized that stolen guns fuel violent crime and that swift consequences are non-negotiable. “When firearms are stolen from dealers, they vanish into underground markets,” she said. “This plea sends a message: we’re tracking them — and you.”

Sentencing is set for March 7, 2017, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Coeur d’Alene. With no prior federal convictions on record, Goddard may face a lower end of the sentencing range — but prosecutors are pushing for maximum deterrence. The two stolen guns have not yet been recovered.