Apr 22, 2015 2 min read

A former Masontown police officer was arrested Wednesday on charges he possessed four sawed-off shotguns, including one he allegedly stole from his police department’s evidence locker.

Robert L. Kelly Jr., 32, of Uniontown, faces felony charges of theft, receiving stolen property and altering a firearm’s serial number, along with four misdemeanor counts of possessing a prohibited weapon, according to court documents.

State police said Kelly was employed as a Masontown police officer when they began investigating in September 2013 after police in Uniontown were called to his home during a domestic dispute and found him with the altered shotguns. Police said they found three shotguns with the barrels shortened, and were contacted by Masontown police Chief Joseph Ryan about a fourth weapon he had confiscated from Kelly.

Investigators said Ryan went to the Uniontown Police Department and viewed cellphone footage of Kelly firing a shotgun on an unknown date. Police did not elaborate on where Kelly allegedly fired the weapon or who recorded the video. However, the police chief recognized the weapon as one that had been stored in his police department’s evidence locker for years, and he demanded Kelly return it, court records indicate.

Troopers said Kelly admitted to them in an October 2013 interview that he had taken the shotgun from the evidence room and had it in his possession for “about a month” before returning it.

Kelly is no longer listed as a Masontown police officer on the department’s website and it was not known when he left the department. Ryan could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

A state grand jury in Pittsburgh returned its finding April 16 and charges were filed Wednesday morning against Kelly. District Judge Michael Metros arraigned Kelly and he was released on $25,000 unsecured bond.