A complaint has been filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California against Anatolian Arms, a Mexico gun and ammunition dealer, alleging fraud and unfair business practices. Anatolian Arms owner Will Johnson is named in the complaint, as well.

The complaint was filed by Peterson Watts Law Group of Roseville, California, on behalf of the Sacramento Gun Club in the state’s capital. The document demands a refund totaling $284,239.75 for ammunition purchased in advance but not delivered.

Anatolian Arms delivered a portion of the order, amounting to more than 80,000 rounds, in October.

According to the documents, the Sacramento Gun Club was invoiced on July 10 and September 15 for a total of 740,000 rounds of various caliber. Johnson explains that the entire ammunition manufacturing industry is facing shortages and delays in the wake of unprecedented demand.

“To put it in perspective, just in the last two months there are 7 million new gun owners,” Johnson said. If each of these new owners place minimal orders for ammunition, it means 700 million rounds on top of existing demand. “It’s probably the highest demand the industry has ever seen,” he added. “We can’t go any faster.”

Even the largest manufacturers have failed to meet demand. Johnson says the regular business cycle has been battered as the pandemic and fear-based orders for ammunition after the wave of riots earlier this year affected the market. In one three week stretch over the summer, he notes, there were 8.1 billion rounds purchased nationwide.

“Everyone in the industry got drained,” Johnson said. Buyers cleared out Anatolian Arms’ inventory temporarily in March.

In order to keep pace, Johnson temporarily halted the shop’s weapons modification work, closed the storefront to walk in customers and turned the focus to just two caliber of shells. Anatolian Arms turns out 76,800 9mm shells per day alone.

“We’re doing what we can,” he pointed out. “We’re going to keep working, to keep going.”

The complaint filed against Anatolian Arms acknowledges the unusual situation. It reports that in early July, responding to “a wildly volatile ammunition market and the impacts of shortages and disruptions in supply channels” the gun club turned to Anatolian Arms as its “sole source” supplier for training classes.

According to the documents, Anatolian Arms offered a flat rate for ammunition, which would soften the blow of price increases that were roiling the market.

Court documents allude to a Nov. 1 delivery date for the remainder of the gun club’s order. They allege that the gun club’s director of operations, Jackie Long, waited until Nov. 3 to ask again about the status of the order.

In email exchanges included in the documents presented to the court by Peterson Watts, Johnson allegedly terminated their contract and promised full repayment. In an email to Long sent on Nov. 12, Johnson claimed the law allowed him 30 days to provide a refund and noted that the amount would be sent by certified check. The email allegedly from Johnson went on to say “If you have a problem with that have your attorney contact us. My team of attorneys will be waiting for their call.”

The documents state that since Nov. 12, repeated demands for the refund have gone unanswered.

Glenn Peterson of Peterson Watts says an immediate payment of refund is the best possible outcome for all parties. He adds that information on the matter has been given to federal investigators and that if delays continue, the case will escalate.

“He didn’t use the money – at least we don’t think so,” Peterson added. “No matter how you slice it, the best outcome is an immediate refund.”

Johnson has retained Oberheiden P.C., a federal defense firm based in Fort Worth, Texas, with offices nationwide. A call to Paul Strickland, part of the Overheiden team in California, was not returned by deadline.

Anatolian Arms is located in a small shop on Liberty Street in Mexico. It has 15 employees and Johnson has plans to expand. In the summer he sought to have a larger plot of land along Liberty rezoned to heavy industry, but the city turned down the request.

He now says he hopes eventually to set up a manufacturing site out of town and reopen the shop on Liberty as a storefront.

But Peterson Watts is blunt about Anatolian Arms in the documents presented to the U.S. District Court, noting that the Sacramento Gun Club “alleges on information and belief that Defendants are operating a sham enterprise, which employs deception and likely criminal conduct as its primary stock in trade.”

Johnson could not comment on litigation.