Long Beach Police Report Missing Rifles

The department discovered four rifles bought in 2014 were absent from its military equipment inventory during an April 2026 audit.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Military

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The Long Beach Police Department omitted four Accuracy International AX .308 rifles, purchased in 2014 for $28,000 combined, from its military equipment inventories. The rifles were found missing during an April 2026 audit and the omission was disclosed in the department's 2025 Annual Military Equipment Report.

Why it matters

The discrepancy surfaced under California's Assembly Bill 481 equipment reporting requirements, which govern how Long Beach police disclose military-style equipment to the public. The department attributes the omission to an oversight and is revising its inventory procedures ahead of City Council review.

The department's 2025 report logged 68 AR-15 field deployments with no discharges, while its personally owned AR-15 inventory dropped 37%, from 360 to 228 rifles. The four omitted rifles cost $28,000 combined, and the report does not say when they were removed from inventory.

The players

Long Beach Police Department

The municipal law enforcement agency serving Long Beach, California, which operates under state equipment reporting rules.

Assembly Bill 481

California legislation enacted in 2021 that requires law enforcement agencies to report and oversee military-style equipment use.

The details

The four rifles were discovered missing from the department's documented inventory during an April 2026 audit, despite having been deployed during police incidents since their 2014 purchase. The department attributes the omission to an oversight and says it reviewed its AB 481 inventory and is implementing revised inventory count procedures.

2014: Long Beach Police Department purchases the four Accuracy International AX .308 rifles.
2021: Assembly Bill 481 is enacted, establishing equipment oversight.
April 2026: An audit discovers the four rifles missing from inventory.
November 17: The City Council reviews the 2025 Annual Military Equipment Report.

Roadmap

California's Assembly Bill 481, enacted in 2021, requires police agencies to publicly report military-style equipment and its use, and this audit shows how inventory gaps can surface under that framework. The Long Beach discrepancy tests whether the state's reporting regime catches omissions before they reach public review.

Long Beach residents can review the department's annual military equipment report when it comes before the City Council on November 17. The disclosure shows that public reporting under state law is the main way residents can check how police equipment is tracked and used.

The takeaway

Public equipment reports are only as reliable as the internal audits behind them, so residents who want to track police military equipment should review each year's filing and any City Council discussion of it. Checking whether reported counts match audited inventories is a practical way to follow the issue.

What happens next

The City Council will review the 2025 Annual Military Equipment Report on November 17, where the omission and the department's revised inventory procedures will be considered.