7,500 Weapons Bound for U.S. Are Seized

Associated Press ^ | AIDAN LEWIS

[kahoutek]

ROME (AP) -- Authorities in southern Italy seized about 7,500 Kalashnikov assault rifles and other combat-grade firearms from a ship headed for New York, officials said Tuesday.

The weapons - AK-47s, AKM rifles and machine guns worth more than $6 million - were found mixed in with properly labeled guns in cargo containers on board a Turkish-flagged ship that docked at the port of Gioia Tauro, a police official said.

[kahoutek]

Coming to a shopping mall near you...........

[lepton]

Boy is that a mangled article.

[alpha-8-25-02]

the qestion is were where they headed?

[Pearls Before Swine]

The article calls them "combat" weapons, but doesn't say whether they were full auto. It only talks about bayonet lugs and 30 round clips. Maybe they were just pre-ban style export semis? Were they just early AWB sunset inventory? Or were they full auto and destined for "bad hands?"

[kahoutek]

"A 1994 ban prevents the U.S. gun industry from making, importing or selling military style semiautomatic weapons because."

I KNOW that was written by a liberal.....

[MD_Willington_1976]

Nah, what they got was a shipment of Curio & relics (SKS's & Mausers) and some Romanian AK's that are used as parts rifles...

The real AK's were brought into the states via China (PolyTech & Norinko) when BJ billy bob was in the Oral office...

[txjeep]

Big deal. I thought they found WMDs or something judging by the title.

This was the annoying part... "But that law expires in September." You can almost feel the fear the writer has that someone might be able to buy "combat grade weapons" after the ban expires. Sheesh. Grow up libs. I bet the writer of this has steak knives in their kitchen more dangerous that one of those bayonets.

[Uncle Miltie]

"The AK-47 rifles had been altered so they couldn't be used for rapid fire, but the alteration could be easily reversed, police said."

I understand that any fully-automatic rifle can be disabled and then re-enabled for automatic fire by a competent gunsmith. And, bayonets can be affixed or detached in moments. And, used clips of large size can be traded among owners.

So, this would seem to amount to a technical violation of the "Assault Weapons" laws, no more dangerous than what goes on at your local gun show. For example, I'm pretty sure you could pick up a non-automatic AK-47, a 30+ round clip and a bayonet at a local show. The only illegal thing is to combine them all, and re-work the firing mechanism for full auto.

Now if the designated recipient had a first name of Ahmed, I'd be more interested.

[jim_trent]

> The AK-47 rifles had been altered so they couldn't be used for rapid
> fire, but the alteration could be easily reversed, police said.

Sounds legal to me.

[Charles Martel]

I've got a hunch this was a commercial shipment to Keng's Firearms Specialty, Inc. in Atlanta, GA. KFS has long been an importer of Mausers, SKS rifles, AK (semi-auto) and similar LEGAL firearms. Let's wait and see... the "illegal" firearms may be demilled parts kits.

[Tallguy]

You want to bet that these AK's had folding bayonets? A lot of them do. By itself, that would probably make these particular weapons illegal. As for the reversibility of the semi-automatic conversion -- who cares...

[Poser]

"Sounds legal to me."

It's the bayonet lug and the 30 round magazines that make them illegal. Semi-automatic AK47s are perfectly legal with 10 round mags and no bayonet.

[MD_Willington_1976]

The picture in the AP article shows them without a cut receiver, that's a No No according to the BATFE...I had the same thoughts about the article (Keng's or similar importer)...just a BS filler piece to get everyone wiggy out about the AWB.

[lilylangtree]

Wonder if my relative who lives in Georgia is involved. Wouldn't be surprised considering his background.

[concerned about politics]

Hmmmm. What's in Georgia?
What group would feel they needed them enough to smuggle them into the country?

[Lee Heggy]

I want one of those 'thirty round cartridges'. Sounds pretty spiffy. The assault weapon ban ending on such a whimical note of 'because' is almost romantic. I'll miss the old ban....sigh.

[Pearls Before Swine]

re your post #9:

Sorry, read the article too quickly--looked for that detail on second scan but missed it.

[Kadric]

1: The 1994 Ban would have no effect on non-modified AKs. These would be banned by the 1989 Executive Order not the 1994 ban.

2: The importation of these would not be illegal. Customs would require that those weapons destined for the use as parts kits until they were demilled (Receivers cut, any necessary parts removed) be held in a bonded warehouse until approval that import laws were complied with. This is the cause of the FAL and psh-41 recalls that have happened, the importer complied with the BATFE requirements then later the BATFE determined they had not been cut well enough to prevent them from being used (They were saw cut which leaves a pretty smooth cut an later the BATFE decided they needed to be torch cut)

3: The BATFE has ruled that once a Full-Auto forever a Full-Auto so even if they have been modified for Semi only fire they are banned from import by the 1968 GCA unless imported for sale to an approved agency (I doubt they would allow the importation of 8,000 dealer samples).

4: The 1986 GOPA outlawed the manufacture of Full-Autos for civilian sales. (Actually it didn't, it repealed the Transfer tax. The BATFE ruled that since the tax was repealed that they would no longer allow them to be registered. Thus if caught with one you would be charged with possession of an unregistered machinegun. At least one case that I‘m aware of was won due to the NFA being passed as a revenue tax so since the tax is no longer required there is no requirement to register. )

[jim_trent]

Yea, I keep forgetting those details. I was just thinking of the lack of full-auto.

[camas]

were all the guns listed on the manifest???