scooterbug44
SoWal Expert
Yet another nasty byproduct of our weak and nonsensical gun laws.
And yet another reason why we REALLY need some common sense reforms.
Not sure about anyone else, but I would feel a lot safer if we made it SLIGHTLY DIFFICULT for crazy people and drug dealers to buy 10 AK-47s in a day. :roll:
Not to mention that we share over 1,900 miles of border with the country these drug cartels want to go to war with.
U.S.: Gun raids show cartels at work in Ariz. - U.S. news - Crime & courts - msnbc.com
"Federal officials say they have new evidence that Mexico's most violent drug cartels are exploiting weak U.S. guns laws to acquire massive quantities of assault rifles and other firearms for use in their war against the Mexican government.
In an early morning round-up in Arizona, law enforcement agents Tuesday arrested 20 people who are accused of illegally buying hundreds of AK-47s and other firearms at U.S. gun stores. The defendants allegedly acted as "straw purchasers," falsely declaring on federal forms they were purchasing the weapons for themselves, rather than their real clients: the Sinaloa Cartel and other Mexican drug trafficking organizations across the border, the officials said.
"The massive size of this operation exemplifies the magnitude of the problem ? Mexican drug lords go shopping for war weapons in Arizona," said Dennis K. Burke, the U.S. attorney for Arizona, who announced the raids at a press conference in Phoenix.
In the cases announced Tuesday, officials said the alleged straw buyers managed to acquire the weapons ? and pass federal background checks ? without raising red flags despite the fact that in some cases they plunked down large sums of cash for multiple purchases of assault rifles. In one case, officials said, seven individuals spent $104,251 in cash at various Phoenix-area firearms dealers to acquire 140 firearms.
In addition, officials of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said the arrests point to the urgent need for White House approval of a federal rule they proposed last month that would require firearms dealers in four southwest border states ? Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, and California ? to report multiple sales of long guns. Currently, firearms dealers must report to the ATF when a customer buys two or more handguns, but no such requirement exists for long guns such as AK-47s. ATF officials said such reporting would be an invaluable "intelligence tool" that would allow them identify potential straw buyers for the cartels.
But that proposal, which was published in Federal Register in December, has drawn angry protests from the National Rifle Association and firearms industry, whose spokesmen argue it would impose an unnecessary regulatory burden on the gun stores and potentially infringe on the Second Amendment rights of legitimate gun buyers. "
And yet another reason why we REALLY need some common sense reforms.
Not sure about anyone else, but I would feel a lot safer if we made it SLIGHTLY DIFFICULT for crazy people and drug dealers to buy 10 AK-47s in a day. :roll:
Not to mention that we share over 1,900 miles of border with the country these drug cartels want to go to war with.
U.S.: Gun raids show cartels at work in Ariz. - U.S. news - Crime & courts - msnbc.com
"Federal officials say they have new evidence that Mexico's most violent drug cartels are exploiting weak U.S. guns laws to acquire massive quantities of assault rifles and other firearms for use in their war against the Mexican government.
In an early morning round-up in Arizona, law enforcement agents Tuesday arrested 20 people who are accused of illegally buying hundreds of AK-47s and other firearms at U.S. gun stores. The defendants allegedly acted as "straw purchasers," falsely declaring on federal forms they were purchasing the weapons for themselves, rather than their real clients: the Sinaloa Cartel and other Mexican drug trafficking organizations across the border, the officials said.
"The massive size of this operation exemplifies the magnitude of the problem ? Mexican drug lords go shopping for war weapons in Arizona," said Dennis K. Burke, the U.S. attorney for Arizona, who announced the raids at a press conference in Phoenix.
In the cases announced Tuesday, officials said the alleged straw buyers managed to acquire the weapons ? and pass federal background checks ? without raising red flags despite the fact that in some cases they plunked down large sums of cash for multiple purchases of assault rifles. In one case, officials said, seven individuals spent $104,251 in cash at various Phoenix-area firearms dealers to acquire 140 firearms.
In addition, officials of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said the arrests point to the urgent need for White House approval of a federal rule they proposed last month that would require firearms dealers in four southwest border states ? Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, and California ? to report multiple sales of long guns. Currently, firearms dealers must report to the ATF when a customer buys two or more handguns, but no such requirement exists for long guns such as AK-47s. ATF officials said such reporting would be an invaluable "intelligence tool" that would allow them identify potential straw buyers for the cartels.
But that proposal, which was published in Federal Register in December, has drawn angry protests from the National Rifle Association and firearms industry, whose spokesmen argue it would impose an unnecessary regulatory burden on the gun stores and potentially infringe on the Second Amendment rights of legitimate gun buyers. "
