Maryland’s draconian gun control laws didn’t stop a group of armed men from targeting a pair of delivery drivers in the D.C. suburbs on Christmas Eve, but they did prevent the drivers from being able to fight back.

The pair were abducted at gunpoint and their box truck full of packages stolen by a group of individuals on Christmas Eve in Prince George’s County, Maryland after several men in two different cars forced the truck off of a busy highway and and on to the shoulder of the road.

A total of five men, at least two armed, forced the delivery drivers to get into the back of the truck where over 100 packages were stored.

The victims told police they were taken to unknown locations, but they believed it was in Maryland. That’s where they were held inside the truck while the packages were removed. All five suspects were wearing black or dark clothing with full face coverings.

Once all the packages were unloaded, the victims were released along with the truck. The delivery drivers drove to D.C. before eventually going to the College Park barrack to report these crimes.

According to Prince George’s police, carjackings and “jump-in thefts” of vehicles have increased by more than 300% compared to 2019, with a total of 469 incidents so far this year. Given the state’s restrictive carry laws that prevent the average citizen from obtaining a concealed carry license, crooks seem to have figured out that the odds are in their favor.

Under Maryland law, those hoping to receive a license to carry have to demonstrate a “justifiable need” to do so, and self-defense isn’t seen as a valid reason. Neither is living or working in a county with a crime rate that’s spiraling out of control. No, instead applicants must demonstrate evidence of a specific, ongoing threat against their life or document some special circumstance in their job or personal life that elevates their desire for self-protection above those of the average resident in Baltimore, Prince George’s County, or anywhere else in the state.

If you live in Maryland or the D.C. area, you’ve likely heard public service announcements featuring Governor Larry Hogan telling people to “wear the damn mask” in order to fight COVID-19. Why isn’t the governor demanding that Democrats in the state “fix the damn law” and recognize that the Second Amendment protects the right of the average citizen to bear arms as well as to keep them? It’s doubtful that the Democrats in charge of the state house in Annapolis would comply with his demand, but at least he’d raise some attention to the issue.

Given Hogan’s rumored interest in running for president in 2024, you’d think he’d be quick to jump on the issue, but for whatever reason the governor has been mostly mum on the right to carry since lawmakers overrode his veto of a bill abolishing the state’s Handgun Review Board, which provided concealed carry applicants with an appeals process if they believed their application was wrongly denied.

There’s also a federal lawsuit challenging the state’s carry laws that was filed back in November by the Second Amendment Foundation, Firearms Policy Coalition, and Maryland Shall Issue which could provide some relief to gun owners in the state, but at the moment the criminals clearly have the upper hand. They don’t care that they’re carrying a gun without a license any more than they’re concerned about breaking the law prohibiting carjackings. It’s the law-abiding gun owners in Maryland who are feeling the brunt of the state’s gun control laws, and that appears to be just fine with the officials in charge of the state.