Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP Wayne Shea, a Westford, Mass. man arrested in Nashua with a dozen firearms he allegedly stole from a storage facility in Massachusetts, enters Superior Court Thursday for a bail hearing.

NASHUA – A Massachusetts man with “a significant criminal history,” and now charged with stealing 12-16 firearms and taking them across state lines, was jailed Thursday on $25,000 cash or surety bail.

Wayne Shea, 37, of Westford, waived formal arraignment Thursday in Hillsborough County Superior Court-South. During a subsequent bail hearing, Assistant County Attorney Cassie Devine told the court Shea is accused of burglarizing a storage facility, taking “numerous firearms” and allegedly taking them across the state line into New Hampshire.

Devine said representatives of the U.S. Attorney’s Office will eventually take the case because of the federal charges filed against Shea.

Devine asked Judge Charles Temple to hold Shea on preventive detention for the time being, citing what she described as “a lengthy criminal history,” including charges of armed robbery and assault with a deadly weapon from 2006.

“The state’s position is there is clear and convincing evidence the defendant should be held on preventive detention,” Devine said. “The fact he is accused of stealing guns and taking them across state lines makes him a danger.”

Attorney Amanda Steenhuis, a public defender representing Shea, asked Temple to set “reasonable surety bail,” citing the absence of any evidence the firearms were sold and noting there is no indication of violence connected to the alleged burglary and theft.

“A theft charge doesn’t make him a danger to the community,” Steenhuis said.

Temple settled on the $25,000 cash or surety bail, citing Shea’s “extensive criminal history” and the possibility he would flee the jurisdiction if released from jail.

If he is able to post bail, Shea must agree to home confinement, meaning he must not leave his home in Westford except for work, medical appointments, court appearances or legal purposes, such as meeting with his attorney.

He must also stay away from the storage facility and not travel outside New Hampshire or Massachusetts.

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