I had a transfer of a firearm to Goshen Guns in Edwardsville. When I called the store to ask about the transfer, the phone was picked up by the owner, Terry Bast. Terry told me he didn't know his state's gun laws, so he wasn't sure if i could transfer the firearm, after some waiting he finally learned that my gun could be transferred. I didn't think anything of it, as at the time i didn't know this was the owner, and assumed some old man that helps around the store picked up and simply did not know what i was asking about.
i called back again to let them know my transfer should be shipped out, but i am waiting on a FOID card so i wouldn't be able to pick it up right away. Terry answered again, but seemed to be more concerned with letting me know that the foid card could take a while, and with a chuckle, was more than happy to provide the rates for storing my property at his store for an extended period of time. i also had to go through the motions of Terry telling me he didn't know his states gun laws, and didn't know if he could transfer the gun, as terry did not remember this exact conversation from a day or so ago. again, not something i was immediately worried about, even though its a tiny store and ive never seen another customer in there in any of the times i had gone to the store in person, and especially since the ISP site stated it wouldn't take long (within 30 days typically)
when i was approved for a foid card i got an E copy on my phone and went to the store to pick up my property. Terry was there to help and told me he couldn't legally accept the e foid. when i asked why he said he couldn't copy it. i said not to worry, i can run home and print a copy out for his records. he insisted that he could not accept an e foid card at all. this seemed suspicious, especially since the cards have existed for a year and it explicitly states on the card that it is a legal FOID card for the sake of owning and transporting a firearm, and Terry's story about why he couldn't accept an E card kept changing.
i research the E card a bit more, and found very quickly on the ISP site that an emailed copy was sufficient for a gun stores record keeping, so i sent an email with the card attached. when i called to tell him that i sent the copy and that i would be on my way to get my property, i was told that he was calling the state police to figure out what he needs to do.
keep in mind, Illinois e foids have been around since this time last year, so this is when i became concerned about the company, as the owner has now openly admitted to not knowing several state gun laws on more than one occasion, and is still giving me the run around in what i suspect was an attempt to collect money on storage fees for my fire arm.
it was at this point that i got fed up and decided to post a review online detailing my interactions with Terry. I called terry the next day to find out what the state police said, to which he told me he can accept the e card, and would be more than happy to use it so the transfer could be completed.
however, Terry changed his tune when i got to the store. he told me he didn't feel comfortable giving me the gun, and denied the transfer. i didn't have time to argue, so i went home and gave him the day to cool off, since its obvious i upset him since he is abusing his power over an honest review of his store.
when i called the next day, i offered to take down the offending (but truthful) review in return for completing the transfer, to which he agreed.
however, Terry's tune changed once more when i came down to the shop for the transfer, stating again that he didn't feel comfortable, even though i had upheld my end of the bargain.
this doesn't even take into account that the store looks less like a store and more like a gun hoarders nest. guns were laid out and unattended by employees, or simply left out in publicly accessible walk ways. they didn't even know where my gun was the first time i showed up to get it, after some looking around they found it in a pile of other boxes that was behind me in the middle of the store.
the shop seems dangerous, they don't keep the door locked so anyone can just walk in, grab something, and leave and they can't even keep track with their own inventory. read more
