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Law enforcement confiscated in excess of 1,000 weapons and weapon pieces as part of a crackdown focusing on the spread of illegal guns in Australia and New Zealand.

International Operation Culminates in Apprehensions and Recoveries

A seven-day cross-border operation led to more than 180 detentions, based on statements from customs agents, and the seizure of 281 privately manufactured guns and components, such as products created with three-dimensional printers.

Local Finds and Detentions

Across the state of NSW, police found numerous three-dimensional printers alongside pistols of a certain design, ammunition clips and 3D-printed holsters, along with other gear.

State police reported they detained 45 suspects and confiscated 518 weapons and weapon pieces in the course of the operation. Numerous persons were charged with crimes among them the creation of prohibited guns without a licence, importing banned items and possessing a electronic design for production of firearms – a crime in various jurisdictions.

“These additively manufactured parts might appear vibrant, but they are not toys. Once assembled, they become deadly arms – entirely illicit and extremely dangerous,” an experienced detective stated in a release. “This is the reason we’re focusing on the complete pipeline, from fabrication tools to imported parts.

“Public safety is the foundation of our weapon control program. Gun owners need to be licensed, guns have to be registered, and adherence is absolute.”

Increasing Issue of DIY Firearms

Information gathered during an inquiry indicates that over the past five years more than 9,000 guns have been taken illegally, and that currently, law enforcement conducted confiscations of homemade weapons in almost every regional jurisdiction.

Legal documents show that the digital designs being manufactured in Australia, driven by an digital network of creators and enthusiasts that advocate for an “absolute freedom to possess firearms”, are steadily functional and deadly.

Over the past three to four years the pattern has been from “extremely amateur, very low-powered, practically single-use” to superior guns, police reported at the time.

Immigration Seizures and Digital Sales

Components that cannot be reliably fabricated are often acquired from e-commerce sites overseas.

An experienced customs agent said that in excess of 8,000 unlawful weapons, pieces and accessories had been detected at the frontier in the most recent accounting period.

“Foreign-sourced weapon pieces can be constructed with additional DIY components, forming dangerous and unregistered guns appearing on our streets,” the officer added.

“Many of these products are being sold by digital stores, which could result in people to wrongly believe they are unregulated on shipment. Numerous of these websites just process purchases from abroad on the buyer’s behalf lacking attention for border rules.”

Further Recoveries Throughout Multiple Regions

Recoveries of products among them a projectile launcher and fire projector were further executed in the southeastern state, Western Australia, Tasmania and the the NT, where law enforcement stated they located multiple homemade guns, as well as a fabrication tool in the distant settlement of a specific location.