Guns Are Show And Tell For Bothell Man

He wears a top hat on TV, telling the public to come down to the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe and "buy, sell, or trade" firearms, at the type of event the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms calls an inevitable attraction for criminals seeking guns.

Inside his Bothell home, Al Abellera, wearing a V-neck sweater monogrammed with the National Rifle Association's initials, is a mild-mannered man who preaches gun safety and Second Amendment protections.

Of the two recurring, large gun shows in the Seattle area, Abellera's has fewer rules and, ATF agents might say, more cause for concern.

The Washington Arms Collectors, who sponsor monthly shows at the Puyallup Fairgrounds, allow the general public into the show with an admission fee. But only members, who must submit to and pass the club's background check for felonies and other disqualifications for owning firearms, are allowed to buy guns.

Abellera, by contrast, permits any adult willing to pay the $3 admission fee to purchase firearms. And a number of exhibitors at his shows are so-called "private individuals" under the law, who are not required to make buyers wait for delivery of handguns, fill out forms or submit to background checks.

Local authorities report no problems with shows run either by Abellera or the Washington Arms Collectors, saying they seem to operate within state law.

But federal officials say the potpourri of weapons available, the sale of equipment to convert semiautomatic weapons to fully automatic and the lack of paperwork in many sales create dangerous potential.

"There are absolutely no checks and balances," said Jack Seabrook, ATF's head of law enforcement for Western Washington. "Dealers are not the problem. It's the person who's not a dealer who goes to, quote, `sell his personal firearms' - no paperwork required."

Some of the stockpiled weapons Branch Davidian cult leader David Koresh used to hold off ATF agents in a siege since Feb. 28 in Waco, Texas, are believed to have been purchased at gun shows in Texas.

But Seabrook acknowledges he lacks hard statistics to prove his fears. In its last nationwide study of how guns get to criminals, published a year ago, ATF interviewed 100 felons convicted federally of possessing firearms. Only 6 percent of convicts who answered the question reported obtaining their weapons from gun shows and flea markets.

"The gun show," says Abellera, "is really a pain in the side, from their point of view, but it is a legal extension of every (federally licensed) dealer's business. I've never heard of a gun sold at our show being used in a crime."

ATF does not keep track of how many gun shows are held in Washington state.

Ads in gun publications indicate there are periodic shows in Bremerton, Spokane, the Tri-Cities and Longview, as well as in Puyallup and Monroe. Smaller, less formal shows are held in Kent and Snohomish.

Visitors to a March 21 show promoted by Abellera found all sorts of weapons and ammunition, including long knives, martial arts "throwing stars," large military-style assault rifles and tiny .22- and .25-caliber semiautomatic pistols that fit in the palm of a hand.

Many sellers with federal firearms dealer licenses could be seen going by the book, requiring buyers to fill out forms for background checks.

They set up appointments to deliver handguns after a five-day waiting period to buyers who didn't have concealed-weapons permits, as state law requires.

Then there were people like the exhibitor in the cowboy hat, "just selling a few things from my private collection." He required nothing more than $120 in cash for his purse-sized .380-caliber pistol - no paperwork, no waiting. A couple with a large array of handguns wanted only to know that the buyer was 21 and a resident of Washington. One fellow had an impressive collection of gleaming Berettas, Glocks, and Smith & Wesson handguns, but no dealer's license. He offered same-day purchases, but not his name.

Abellera, 56, estimates private individuals account for less than 20 percent of the exhibitors at his shows. He encourages those sellers to fill out receipts for buyers and take their names, addresses and telephone numbers "so if anything happens, you have some basis for research." But he acknowledges he has no idea how many exhibitors do the same.

Federally licensed dealers, on the other hand, are required to file paperwork on buyers and adhere to the waiting period for handguns. "If not, they're out," Abellera said.

No one is allowed to sell guns to minors. He says he's witnessed times when sellers turned down buyers. "Somebody comes along, they don't act right and you just don't do it. You make one mistake (by selling to the wrong person) and you could devastate somebody's life."

Abellera remembers vividly his first encounter with a gun back in Ohio at age 7, when his father toted a Winchester rifle into the back yard to show young Al how to shoot squirrels. The boy missed, but flew the tail of a squirrel his father shot that day on his bike and told friends he'd been the one to bag it.

Sixteen years ago, when Abellera was seriously injured in an accident with a drunk driver and had to give up a fleet of taxicabs he owned, his wife, Arlaine, suggested "doing what you like." And he liked going to gun shows.

At that time, shows were small affairs, held in cafeterias or at hotels.

The Abelleras started at the Holiday Inn in South Everett but outgrew it and moved on to Paine Field, the Everett Eagles headquarters and finally the fairgrounds.

"I said, `This is wonderful. I had a great time and it paid me something,' " Abellera said, recalling his first gun sale.

Abellera says law-enforcement agents often visit his shows, both to browse for personal weapons or just to monitor what's going on.

"They're perfectly welcome; we have nothing to hide," he said.

He will not allow cameras inside, because "(the sellers) don't want it." Nor will he allow loaded firearms. And Abellera comes on the loudspeaker frequently to remind participants, "Remember folks, safety first."