Feds ran sting to buy guns illegally online

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johndoe3
Silent But Deadly
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Feds ran sting to buy guns illegally online

Post by johndoe3 »

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/20 ... line-fail/

Federal agents ran an operation from July 2015 to November of 2017, to attempt to purchase guns online through sales to prohibited persons.

The results were conclusive in 72 attempted purchases online where the Federal agent revealed that they were a convicted felon; and in all 72 cases the seller refused to sell the gun to the prohibited person or wanted a face-to-face transaction (wouldn't ship the gun).
Federal agents posing as illegal gun buyers failed in nearly all of their dozens of attempts to purchase guns online, according to the multiyear study that tried to examine how current firearms laws could apply to purchases over the internet.

All 72 undercover attempts to buy guns through readily accessible internet sites failed, though agents did manage to make two buys out of sevens attempts through the more restrictive “dark web,” according to the recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

“Tests … demonstrated that private sellers GAO contacted on gun forums and other classified ads were unwilling to sell a firearm to an individual who appeared to be prohibited from possessing a firearm,” the report said.

In 56 cases, sellers ultimately refused the transactions, either because they wouldn’t ship a firearm or because they ended up nixing the transaction after an agent said they had been convicted of a felony or had other issues legally barring them from getting a gun.

In five of the cases, the investigators’ online accounts were eventually frozen by the participating websites and the 11 remaining attempts appeared to be scams, the report said.
On the Dark web, the Feds were able to purchase a gun in 2 of the 7 cases.
In addition to the “surface web” — the standard internet universe available to most online users — agents also probed the more restrictive “dark web” for potential transactions. That area of the internet often requires additional software and encryption tools, as well as alternative currency, as it’s frequently used to mask illegal or illicit activity.

Out of seven “dark web” purchase attempts, agents managed to buy an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle with the serial number “obliterated,” as well as a semiautomatic Uzi that was advertised as a fully automatic weapon. Those two cases were referred to other law enforcement agencies.
All in all, it shows that conclusively that people aren't willing to sell a gun to a prohibited person, except for 2 cases on the Dark Web out of the ~80 total attempts (probably stolen guns on the Dark web being sold by criminals).

This Federal operation puts to rest the anti-gun talking point about guns being easily purchased online by prohibited persons.
You can fool all of the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time...and those are pretty good odds.
Brett Maverick, gambler on TV (also used by Progressive leaders everywhere)
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