Since March, DS Arms owner Dave Selvaggio had been looking forward to exhibiting at Wizard World Comic Con Chicago. The event, which began Thursday and runs through Sunday, welcomes tens of thousands of fans as they celebrate the best in pop culture. But as it turned out, that welcome did not extend to Barrington, Ill.-based DS arms.
Selvaggio set up his booth on Thursday—displaying both real and replica guns—and was 90 minutes into the show before a Wizard World staff member noticed the guns and requested the booth be taken down. Despite the fact that Selvaggio had properly secured the space from the show promoter, he was still shut down.
Wizard World Comic Con claims to celebrate “movies, comics, toys, video gaming, games, TV, horror, wrestling, MMA” and more. But apparently it’s all just for show. As Selvaggio noted, “Just because people are fans of comic books and sci-fi doesn't mean they're not interested in protecting themselves."