LOS ANGELES, Jan. 31, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On January 21, 2012, a secret bidder bought two guns reportedly owned by renowned and murderous bank robbers' Bonnie & Clyde at Springfield, Missouri's Mayo Auction Realty. Spending $210,000 on a .45-caliber Thompson submachine gun (known as a "Tommy gun") and an 1897 12-gauge Winchester shotgun, was purchaser Bruce McMahan, financier, philanthropist and owner of the Centaur Performance Group, creator of the Maxximus G Force, the world's fastest street legal fossil fuel powered supercar and the Maxximus LNG 2000, which earlier this week eclipsed the pre-existing Maxximus records making it the fastest LNG powered car in the world. The all carbon-fiber cars were engineered in Indianapolis by designer Marlon Kirby. In addition, Centaur is also developing a consumer-targeted line of vehicles that can be powered by all three-fuel types. Further details of the Maxximus LNG 2000 will be announced next week.
Said McMahan, "I am enormously proud to add these historic items to my firearms collection. They are iconic pieces of Americana that truly represent the turn of an era."
The auction had over 100 participants and the infamous weaponry far exceeded pre-sales estimates of $25,000.
The guns were taken in a police shootout with criminals Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in the city of Joplin, Missouri on April 13, 1933. According to accounts, the family of one of the two officers killed in the melee received the guns in honor of their death and servitude. The remaining family had the guns in their possession until 1973. During that year, the celebrated artillery was placed on public display in Springfield, Missouri police museum. They were removed late last year in advance of being placed in auction.
Recently, McMahan's company, Centaur Performance Group, unveiled at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas, the Maxximus LNG 2000, the second generation of the world's fastest legal streetcar, Maxximus G-Force. The Maxximus G force, certified as the world's fastest street legal supercar maintains records of 0 to 60 mph in 2 seconds, 0-150 mph in 9.3 seconds, elapsed time in ¼ mile 9.7 seconds and speed in ¼ mile at 157 mph. The Maxximus LNG 2000, the worlds first LNG powered supercar was tested earlier this week in Valdesta, Georgia and broke these pre-existing milestones. Complete details of this accomplishment will be made available next week.
Centaur Performance Group specializes in credit, relative value and niche energy strategies. Centaur's energy team allocates investment capital to private, continental U.S. based, oil and natural gas assets and the production of American energy resources. Recently, Hedge Week named Centaur's credit strategy as the Best Credit Fund of 2009. Centaur is headquartered on Fisher Island, FL, with affiliate offices in Bermuda and Rancho Santa Fe, California.
As Co-Founder and Chairman of the National Cristina Foundation (NCF), McMahan leads a non-profit organization with more than seven hundred worldwide affiliations. Its mission is to support the international development of technology applications for people with special needs. The Foundation originated the concept of technology reuse in 1983 and specializes in redistributing computers and other electronic hardware from corporations and individuals who have outgrown the technology and making them available to those in need.
Media Contact:
Andrew Freedman, (310) 271-0011
andrew@aefpr.com
This information was brought to you by Cision http://www.cisionwire.com
http://www.cisionwire.com/centaur-performance-group/r/purchaser-of-historic-bonnie---clyde-s-guns-revealed,c9213624
The following pictures are available for download:
| [Image] | Maxximus G Force |