ASHFORD, Conn. (WFSB) - A father with two sons, both killed by guns, is now facing charges after the second death.

Charles Bizilj, 70, was arrested this week and charged with risk of injury and negligent storage of a firearm after his 28-year-old son committed suicide with an unsecured handgun at his Ashford home in March.

According to his arrest warrant, police found Bizilj’s son’s body next to a Glock pistol registered to his father. When detectives tried to find a lock for the pistol, they could not. They found two other unsecured guns in the room.

Bizilj’s son did not have a pistol permit, but his father encouraged him to get one before his death, despite his 10-year history of mental health issues.

Andre Armour, owner of Bullseye LLC, a gun shop in Durham, said all firearms are sold with a small lock. State law only requires gun owners to store their firearms in a way no one else can access them. They are not required to have a safe.

“When you plan to purchase your first firearm, you should also have that money set aside for the safe as well,” Armour said.

“The biggest thing we’re talking about is how to utilize the lock and showing them the pros and cons of each and every system. This is very cheap and affordable, but it comes with a lot of lack of security,” Armour said.

Charles Bizilj was never charged in his 8-year-old son Christopher’s death in 2008. He was killed while shooting an Uzi at a gun expo in Massachusetts. At the time, prosecutors said Bizilj relied on advice from others who should have known the gun was too dangerous for a child.

Christopher’s death led to a state law that bans anyone under 16 years old from handling or shooting a machine gun.

“Once someone is made an example of, others tend to fall in line especially when it’s not a huge investment. None of these safes cost more than the firearm themselves usually,” Armour said.

Charles Bizilj was released on a $50,000 bond and was in court Tuesday.

If you or anyone you know needs mental health resources, you can call 988 or 211.

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