Cerberus said it would stay out of the gun debate and sell their gun manufacturers. They lied.

[n2doc]

On Dec 14, 2012, 20 children and six adults were killed in a school shooting in Connecticut by a disturbed 20 year-old using a semi-automatic rifle, the Bushmaster AR-15. The people behind that rifle are Cerberus Capital Management LP, a Manhattan private equity firm named after the mythical three-headed dog that guards the gates of hell.

Cerberus founder Stephen Feinberg and his colleagues had assembled a gun conglomerate called the Freedom Group, the largest firearm manufacturer in the US, including brands like Remington, Bushmaster and Marlin. In the flood of attention following the shooting,
Cerberus it would sell the firm to sidestep what was sure to be a bruising battle over gun safety laws. “As a firm, we are investors, not statesmen or policy makers… it is not our role to take positions, or attempt to shape or influence the gun control policy debate,” Cerberus said in a statement. “That is the job of our federal and state legislators.”

But two years later, federal gun safety laws remain unchanged, and Freedom Group remains profitable and unsold. Its executives—appointed by Cerberus—are helping finance anti-gun control ads against Connecticut’s Democratic governor, Dannel Malloy. Malloy enacted new gun safety laws after the massacre, but Connecticut is also home to several gun-making companies who oppose those restrictions.

If you look at the funding disclosures for the NSSF’s political action committee, you can find a $5,000 donation from George Kollitides, a Cerberus executive who was installed as Freedom Group’s chief executive and chairman of the board, and $10,000 from Walter McLallen, the vice-chairman of Freedom Group, also appointed by Cerberus. While they are just two of the many gun industry advocates funding the organization, they are the only two connected to a company that is ostensibly leaving the business to seek the moral high ground.

http://qz.com/287428/cerberus-said-it-would-stay-out-of-the-gun-debate-why-are-executives-it-appointed-fighting-gun-safety-laws/

[derby378]

1. Doesn't Bushmaster have ongoing contracts with various police departments in the US?

That might help explain things - never hurts to have contacts in law enforcement.

I never fired a Bushmaster, but ChickMagic did once. She got slightly annoyed with the rifle's tendency to jam.

[ManiacJoe]

3. Most likely.

Bushmaster is a good company making a good product. From a financial point of view it is not a bad investment.

[Lurks Often]

2. Apparently Cerberus has actually tried to divest itself

but things got complicated

Allowing entities to opt out of investing in Freedom Group isn't as simple as anyone would like:
http://fortune.com/2014/03/28/california-teachers-still-own-bushmaster-rifle-maker/

I think I read somewhere that Cerberus couldn't get an offer close to what they thought Freedom Group was worth. Combine that with a very profitable 2013 year, no legislative action at the Federal level and probably investors not screaming any more, partly because things have quieted done and partly because they are seeing very good returns on their investment, there is no longer any urgency to sell Freedom Group.