CTRL, HATE, PRINT: #Terrorists and the Appeal of 3D-Printed #Weapons

This summer two separate individuals with links to the extreme right were arrested or convicted in the United Kingdom (UK) on charges including offenses related to 3D-printed firearms. On 14 June, Dean Morrice, a former Army driver and neo-Nazi was sentenced to 18 years in prison for ten terrorism related offences. A 2020 police raid of his home led to the discovery of chemical precursors to make explosives, two 3D printers, and instructions on how to manufacture 3D-printed firearms and parts. Police also found a non-viable 3D-printed weapon leading them to issue a warning over potential terrorist use of 3D-printed firearms. Two days later, it was announced that a 15-year-old was due to stand trial on six terrorism related offences after being caught with digital documents that provided information on how to make explosives from household material and firearms using a 3D printer. Considering these developments, this perspective investigates whether 3D-printed weapons represent a game-changer for the manufacturing of improvised firearms, before briefly investigating the legality of these firearms in various jurisdictions. Instances of terrorist use of 3D-printed firearms are discussed along with factors that may impede and promote the adoption of this technology. The use of improvised firearms by violent non-state actors long predates the emergence of additive manufacturing technologies (a process described in the next section). As such, 3D printing technologies do not necessarily represent a true paradigmatic shift in the ability of non-state actors to manufacture firearms. The Polish resistance movement during the Second World War produced cheap and simple machine pistols which could be manufactured in small workshops by inexperienced gunsmiths. Similarly, the Pacific Ocean theatre saw the use of highly effective and easily manufactured improvised shotguns known in the Philippines as paltik or sumpak. During the Cyprus Emergency, the National Organization of Cypriot Fighters manufactured crude single- shot pistols made from a 20mm shell strapped to a wooden pistol grip, along with some slightly more sophisticated improvised firearms. More recently, the Provisional Irish Republican Army produced scores of improvised firearms, ranging from .22LR revolvers, to pen guns, shotguns and rifles. The Troubles also saw the emergence of the ‘Avenger’ submachine gun manufactured by Ulster loyalist paramilitary groups. Other groups such as the FARC and Chechen rebels also supplemented their arsenals with improvised firearms. Improvised or modified firearms have also been used extensively by lone actors.

via icct : CTRL, HATE, PRINT: Terrorists and the Appeal of 3D-Printed Weapons

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