An 18-year-old Winnipeg man accused of manufacturing and selling 3D-printed ‘ghost guns’ from his Boyd Avenue home is in custody.
Police said the arrest came after an investigation by Winnipeg’s firearms investigation and enforcement unit (FIEU), with the help of the Canada Border Services Agency, beginning in January.
Insp. Elton Hall of the organized crime unit said Thursday that the weapons were being sold to the criminal element in the city — typically to those in gangs and/or organized crime.
When police raided the man’s residence just over a month ago, they seized 20 3D-printed Glock-style lower receiver components, which were in various stages of assembly to become functioning firearms. They also seized a 3D-printed AR-15 style gun that had been made to look like a Nerf-style child’s toy.
In addition, the search netted police around 100 switches used to convert handguns into fully-automatic machine guns, three 3D-printed magazines and one 3D-printed drum magazine, an assortment of loose firearm components, a prohibited rifle and ammunition, two handgun magazines, a 3D printer and spools of filament, and an ounce each of cocaine and psilocybin.
The man faces a laundry list of charges, including a half-dozen weapons offences, two drug charges, and one count of possessing the proceeds of crime.