Gun control at work again. Germany has some of the toughest gun control laws in the world, so where did he get his rifle?
I am not military, but (since we arent’ in Switzerland), I can’t imagine that soldiers take their issue rifles home with them.
I wonder how difficult it would've been for him to travel back to the US on leave and mail the rifle to his German address? Probably not very difficult at all.
When I was stationed in Germany in the lates 70’s, we had a “Rod and Gun Club” on base. One could purchase weapons there ... rifles, handguns, shotguns. Most of the guys kept theirs in the armory for safekeeping. There are many hunters in Germany and the game is plentiful. Not being a hunter myself, I’m not sure what all was involved in getting a hunters license but I’m sure that it was legal to own weapons. Many times sitting in an off-base Coventional Weapons storage area early in the morning, guarding the munitions, I would see armed hunters right outside of my fence.
It is said (in other sources) that he illegally took the semi-automatic gun (! you can´t buy that in Germany!) from the armory of his unit. Depending on the rank and influence of this soldier, this doesn´t sound strange.
I was in Germany in the mid-70s and again from 87-91. Unless the Status of Forces Agreement has changed significantly since 1991, American forces can own weapons without regard to German laws. They can transport them to/from Germany when they move.
Personnel living in barracks must store them in the unit arms room but those living off-post can keep them in their living quarters.
I don’t think this policy is well-known by the German public and I often wondered what kind of stink that would raise.
I’m guessing it was his Army issue rifle. The Army takes the security of its weapons very seriously, but nothing’s foolproof. When I was over there, a determined thief could very easily have broken into our unit’s armory in the middle of the night and made off with a rifle or ten within a few minutes if he really wanted to. Also, depending on the guy’s rank, he could’ve slipped away with his rifle while going to or returning from the field or the rifle range, etc.
I brought my weapons to Germany with me. You just need to file a form. I think it was called an ABC Form 1 or something.
My rifles I could keep at home, my pistols had to be stored in my Unit’s Armory, when not in use.
Um....well.....we do have US military bases in Germany.
This is indeed, very sad.
Actually, it was most likely his assigned service weapon. He may have had it signed out of the arms room for cleaning and then slipped off base without permission when no one was looking.
Not hard to do at all. Most would never do it for fear of getting caught and the rather severe consequences that would follow. He obviously did not care about that.