The IRS and ATF conducted a raid on a gun shop in Montana. They confiscated background check records of gun purchasers. U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT) has stated that the IRS specifically took 4473 forms, which are used for background checks only, and did not take any financial information.

Tom Van Hoose, the owner of Highwood Creek Outfitters, reported that on Wednesday, he was about to open his store when 20 heavily armed agents arrived and pulled in behind him at 7:30 am.

According to the owner who spoke to KRTV, his business has been under investigation by federal law enforcement agencies for over two years. However, he has not been provided any information about the reason for the investigation. Van Hoose was only told that his business was “reported” and has not been able to obtain any further details.

“The fact that they think we make so much money as a gun business that they had to come investigate all the thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of dollars whatever it is we supposedly absconded with, anybody that knows the margins in the gun business knows they’re not that high,” Van Hoose said.

According to Van Hoose, he thinks that his business is being targeted for political reasons.“I can only assume that it’s because of the style of weapons that we have and the press that’s so against them,” he said. “The current administration seems to be hell bent on getting those guns out of the hands of average Americans.”

On Friday, Rep. Rosendale visited the shop and revealed that the IRS had confiscated buyer records. “Tom informed me that these agents confiscated all the 4473 forms, none of which contain any financial information; instead, the IRS now has access to these forms with sensitive personal details of every customer who purchased a firearm from Highwood Creek Outfitters,” Rosendale wrote in a tweet Friday.

In a letter directed to the leaders of the Internal Revenue Service and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Rosendale requested for clarification. “These background check forms contain no financial information, and there is no discernable reason why the IRS would need these forms,” Rosendale wrote.

“The IRS committed an egregious breach of privacy for Montana’s gun owners and I am outraged that the agents involved showed no regard for federal law. Although there are still some murky details regarding the events at Highwood Creek Outfitters, there is still no circumstance in which 4473’s would be necessary in an investigation spearheaded by the IRS.”

The letter requested the agencies to stop carrying out “intimidating raids similar to those conducted in Soviet Russia.” Furthermore, the letter included some more queries about the raid and set a deadline of June 23 for the agencies to respond.

The Billings Gazette was informed by a spokesperson for IRS Criminal Investigation that a raid took place. The spokesperson stated that the IRS Criminal Investigation team was present to conduct their official duties. The ATF did not provide any additional information and referred all questions to the IRS.