Untraceable 3D-printed 'ghost guns' on the rise in Canada
CBC
Police in Canada seized more than 100 3D-printed guns last year, with some jurisdictions seeing big increases in this type of weapon and even busting manufacturing rings for the first time.
In Calgary, for example, police seized 17 3D-printed guns in 2022, compared to just one each in 2021 and 2020.
"I wasn't a big proponent of putting a lot of resources into 3D-printed guns here in Calgary when we first started [the unit], because we just didn't see them," said Ben Lawson, acting staff sergeant of the Calgary Police Service Firearms Investigative Unit.
"All of a sudden now, we're seeing this uptick in 2022, so who knows what 2023 is going to bring."
3D-printed guns fall into a category of homemade firearms referred to as "ghost guns," in part because they are untraceable.
They have no serial number, because the printed part of the gun is the receiver, the part of the weapon that is regulated in Canada. The other parts of the gun can be purchased at gun stores and online without a firearms licence.
Plans for producing these firearms are easily available online, and the item can be made using a consumer-grade 3D printer.
To get a sense of the scope of the problem, CBC News reached out to 20 police forces across the country and collected data from media reports in areas where police wouldn't discuss the number of firearms seized.
These guns have been found across the country, from cities such as Saskatoon and Winnipeg, to smaller places such as Stratford, Ont., and Vulcan, Alta.
"When I look at our statistics, it looks like … there's a flood of 3D guns entering into the city to make up for the gun shortage that we have in the city right now," said Insp. Elton Hall, of the Winnipeg Police Service, at a news conference in July, after his force seized three 3D-printed receivers.
"I knew this was going to happen," he said of these guns making their way into Winnipeg, despite efforts he detailed in the news conference to combat gun violence in the city. "It was only a matter of time."
In December, Winnipeg police announced they had made arrests after a "criminal network solicited and paid legitimate 3D printer services to manufacture" firearm receivers.
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary announced the bust of a manufacturer in February. Eight 3D-printed firearm frames were seized, along with multiple printers and other items, including silencers, which police said were also 3D-printed.
In Saskatoon, police seized two 3D printers and "a number of gun parts" in January — a first for police there.