Current:Home > InvestRifle manufacturer created by Bushmaster founder goes out of business-LoTradeCoin
Rifle manufacturer created by Bushmaster founder goes out of business
View Date:2024-12-23 19:12:35
WINDHAM, Maine (AP) — An AR-15-style rifle manufacturer in Maine that was launched by the founder of Bushmaster Firearms is going out of business and its assets will be auctioned next month, the company announced.
Windham Weaponry was created by Richard Dyke in 2011 after he sold Bushmaster to new owners who decided to move manufacturing out of Maine. The new company was much like the old, using most of the same employees and producing a similar product line.
But the manufacturer announced this month it was going out of business after failing to meet loan obligations. Three auctions of the company’s assets begin Oct. 1.
Dyke, who died in March at age 89, was a major figure behind the scenes in national politics as a donor and in business as a real estate developer and entrepreneur who rescued distressed properties. A small business center at Husson University bears his name.
Dyke created Bushmaster Firearms after buying a gunmaker that was in bankruptcy in 1976. The company became known for high-end rifles, many of them based on the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle used by the U.S. military. The company held contracts with government law enforcement agencies, including the Secret Service, U.S. Marshal’s Service, Border Patrol and Drug Enforcement Agency.
Semi-automatic rifles based on the AR-15 design have been used in numerous high-profile shootings in recent years. Bushmasters were used in the so-called Beltway sniper attacks in 2002, the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012 and the shooting at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store last year.
Dyke owned Bushmaster at the time of the shootings in the District of Columbia area that claimed 10 lives in October 2002. Dyke said at the time that his workers had nothing to be ashamed of. He sold Bushmaster in 2006.
Bushmaster’s successor owner stopped producing the brand, but a new buyer revived the Bushmaster name in 2021 and resumed production.
veryGood! (2988)
Related
- Brian Austin Green’s Fiancée Sharna Burgess Celebrates Megan Fox’s Pregnancy News
- Sephora 24-Hour Flash Sale: 50% Off Ashley Graham's Self-Tanner, Madison LeCroy's Eye Cream & More Deals
- The Bachelorette Star Jenn Tran Shares What She Packed for Her Season, Including a $5 Skincare Must-Have
- Team USA's Rebecca Hart, Fiona Howard win gold in Paralympics equestrian
- California voters reject proposed ban on forced prison labor in any form
- Do smartphone bans work if parents push back?
- As students return to Columbia, the epicenter of a campus protest movement braces for disruption
- 4-year-old boy fatally shot inside a St. Louis house with no adults present
- Eva Longoria calls US 'dystopian' under Trump, has moved with husband and son
- The Fed welcomes a ‘soft landing’ even if many Americans don’t feel like cheering
Ranking
- What Just Happened to the Idea of Progress?
- 1000-Lb. Sisters Star Amy Slaton Arrested for Drug Possession and Child Endangerment
- The 33 most anticipated movies of the Fall
- Kourtney Kardashian’s Glimpse Inside Vacation With Travis Barker Is the Ultimate Vibe
- Is Veterans Day a federal holiday? Here's what to know for November 11
- US reports 28th death caused by exploding Takata air bag inflators that can spew shrapnel
- Suspect in custody after series of shootings left multiple people injured along I-5 near Seattle
- Jessica Pegula earns seventh quarterfinal Grand Slam shot. Is this her breakthrough?
Recommendation
-
It's Red Cup Day at Starbucks: Here's how to get your holiday cup and cash in on deals
-
How Hailey Bieber's Rhode Beauty Reacted to Influencer's Inclusivity Critique
-
Donald Trump Speaks Out Nearly 2 Months After Assassination Attempt
-
Steelers' Arthur Smith starts new NFL chapter with shot at redemption – and revenge
-
Black, red or dead: How Omaha became a hub for black squirrel scholarship
-
Meet the Hunter RMV Sherpa X-Line, the 'affordable' off-road RV camper
-
Ezra Frech gets his gold in 100m, sees momentum of Paralympics ramping up
-
Highlights from the first week of the Paralympic Games in Paris