ATF Seized my Replica Mini-14

Nafets

Nafets

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About a month and a half ago I bought a Replica Mini-14 on GunBroker. The guy selling it said he bought it from an FFL and wanted to send it to an FFL so I went with it. Had the thing shipped to Guns Inc. in West Springfield. Waited almost 3 weeks and didn't hear anything so finally called to check if they have it and was told it was seized by the ATF because it has a plugged live barrel and was almost 100% complete other than firing pin and lack of serial numbers. I thought it may have some live parts on it but I was under the impression that it had a dummy receiver and no receiver = no firearm!
So now I'm irritated because 3 weeks went by and nobody told me anything about my mini getting confiscated! How long were they planning on waiting before telling me?!?! The next day I get a phone call from Rob stating that he talked to ATF Agent and the mini-14 was going to be returned to me in a week or 2. Said ATF specifically told him NOT to contact me to see what I did next just in case I was trying something shady. GREAT! They are treating me like as if I sold machine guns to school children or something equally stupid!
It wasn't some shady back alley deal, I bought it on GunBroker and had it shipped to a fricken FFL! If I was trying to do something shady I wouldn't have it shipped to a federally licensed dealer! Are people really that stupid?
It is now another 3 weeks later, 6 weeks total so far and still nothing! No phone calls, No paperwork, NOTHING! I called Guns Inc. Friday and got contact info for the ATF agent and he doesn't even have a fricken voicemail that works!
Has anybody here dealt with a similar situation? How long did it take for it to be resolved? Did you finally get your gun back? Was it in 1 piece when it was returned? Am I on some snackbar watch list? Can I still get on a plane? I have so many questions!

-Nafets
 
What the f*** shady shit are you going to do with a dummy gun that's not been delivered to you? Start spamming the seller? Track it down? File a police report?
 
I’d recommend building better relationships with whoever you decide to use as an FFL...
No FFL I would deal with would keep me in the dark like that regardless of what the ATF has to say about it.....

I call fail on the on everyone but you... thank god you didn’t just have it mailed to your house.... I would have.... then would have had to rat myself out ,out of paranoia I was being set up.
 
You most likely will never see that replica gun again and thank your lucky stars that you have not been arrested on some nutty building and trafficking firearms charge. You may need to contact a gun attorney to get this straitened out. It also looks as though the ATF has pressured the dealer into working with them and they have been scared into submission. This dealer in no longer your friend and can not be trusted. This whole investigation my stem all the way back to the person you purchased the replica gun from.
 
Are we talking about a semi-auto Mini-14 or the Full-Auto Ruger AC-556? I don't understand why a replica semi-auto would ever be flagged. Am I missing something here?
 
Not the first time they've done shit like this...

Agents of Incompetence: ATF Dodges FOIA, Still Has Seized BB Guns (Part IV)

It was only a month ago that a bizarre story broke in the Pacific Northwest, as Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers trumpeted their seizure of what they claimed were more than two dozen machine guns disguised as toys.

The problem with the CBP claim was that the items seized were 16 WE TTI (WE Tech) M4A1 and 14 WE TTI (WE Tech) M4 CQBR gas blowback Airsoft rifles that shoot plastic BBs.

They really were toys.

But instead of admitting they can't tell a toy gun from a real one, CBP turned these Airsoft rifles over to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the agency agreed that these pot-metal made, plastic BB-shooting plinkers were honest-to-God firearms.

To put it mildly, things got interesting.

An Airsoft expert from England dismissed the claim as absurd. In the U.S., AirSplat expert Jon Dibblee -- who was once Sgt. Jon Dibblee, a U.S. Army infantryman -- categorically denied that the WE Tech M4s could be made into machine guns, an expert opinion supported by a gunsmith specializing in the AR rifle who examined another WE Tech in great detail.

Agents of Incompetence: ATF Dodges FOIA, Still Has Seized BB Guns (Part IV)

 
I'm guessing he was preparing his A-Team Halloween costume a little early!

images
 
Even if you didn't pay a lot for the deactivated gun, I would lawyer up in case this turns into something more complicated.
 
Bonesinium said:
This sounds ridiculous, that’s how I know it’s true. If it sounded reasonable I wouldn’t believe it. This is the ATF after all.
Click to expand...

Yup. Remember a few years back when they declared that the GSG-5 barrel shroud was a silencer? It is beyond me how someone could think a device designed to protect your hands from heat, and is LOCATED OVER THE EFFING BARREL (not extending beyond the muzzle) and has no holes, is a silencer. But... well... retards! Fortunately, I was able to get that silencer exchanged for something that looks and functions identical but is not a silencer (and that made a lot of sense too!)
 
LoginName said:
Not the first time they've done shit like this...

Agents of Incompetence: ATF Dodges FOIA, Still Has Seized BB Guns (Part IV)

It was only a month ago that a bizarre story broke in the Pacific Northwest, as Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers trumpeted their seizure of what they claimed were more than two dozen machine guns disguised as toys.

The problem with the CBP claim was that the items seized were 16 WE TTI (WE Tech) M4A1 and 14 WE TTI (WE Tech) M4 CQBR gas blowback Airsoft rifles that shoot plastic BBs.

They really were toys.

But instead of admitting they can't tell a toy gun from a real one, CBP turned these Airsoft rifles over to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the agency agreed that these pot-metal made, plastic BB-shooting plinkers were honest-to-God firearms.

To put it mildly, things got interesting.

An Airsoft expert from England dismissed the claim as absurd. In the U.S., AirSplat expert Jon Dibblee -- who was once Sgt. Jon Dibblee, a U.S. Army infantryman -- categorically denied that the WE Tech M4s could be made into machine guns, an expert opinion supported by a gunsmith specializing in the AR rifle who examined another WE Tech in great detail.

Agents of Incompetence: ATF Dodges FOIA, Still Has Seized BB Guns (Part IV)
Click to expand...

The way I hear it the air soft lower was demisionaly accurate where as you could install a fcg and an upper and in theory you had a rifle.... just not as good as the liquid to polymer formed lowers..... so basically it looked enough like a real gun that when you build a gun from it you had somthing that looked like a gun and was as reliable as the Clinton’s telling the truth....

As far as the OP, if I bought a replica for some reason or anything of mine was with the ATF.. I’d be getting it back...... but I’m kinda young.... Might take a long time.

To everyone else my best guess is it’s wasnt deactivated correctly.... I’m not pro or anti guns inc... but it doesn’t take a genius to look at a firearm and say “well this ain’t right” if I had an FFL I would refuse to transfer fake guns.... their in the gun business not the toy business and now they have unwanted atf involvement
 
I admit that curiosity got to me and I looked at the Gunbroker item. Shipping via an FFL was really inviting scrutiny where none was needed, IMO. The receiving FFL simply was CYA, as this likely was uncharted territory for them.
 
Some thought games;
The receiver, which is the firearm, was fully formed but lacked some internal parts and the barrel was plugged. This would essentially be the same as an AR stripped lower in the eyes of the ATF. But it lacked a serial number, a big no no. The fact that there were other "parts" attached to the "firearm" is irrelevant. And they want the OP to be on record that it is his.

OP, you need a lawyer.
 
42! said:
Some thought games;
The receiver, which is the firearm, was fully formed but lacked some internal parts and the barrel was plugged. This would essentially be the same as an AR stripped lower in the eyes of the ATF. But it lacked a serial number, a big no no. The fact that there were other "parts" attached to the "firearm" is irrelevant. And they want the OP to be on record that it is his. OP, you need a lawyer.
Click to expand...

I'm not so sure he's the one who needs the lawyer. He never took possession nor even got in the same room as the thing. I would think if ATF wanted him on record as the owner, they'd have let him take possession from the FFL before busting him with it. I think the one who really needs the lawyer is the guy who sold it since he clearly had possession before shipping it to the FFL. OP may never see it and may get the riot act read to him, but not sure how he's violated any laws at this point. Having it go to the FFL instead of his home makes a big difference IMO
 
jpm said:
I'm not so sure he's the one who needs the lawyer. He never took possession nor even got in the same room as the thing. I would think if ATF wanted him on record as the owner, they'd have let him take possession from the FFL before busting him with it. I think the one who really needs the lawyer is the guy who sold it since he clearly had possession before shipping it to the FFL. OP may never see it and may get the riot act read to him, but not sure how he's violated any laws at this point. Having it go to the FFL instead of his home makes a big difference IMO
Click to expand...

I think you're right that the seller is in deeper poo than OP, but when the words "ATF" and "seizure" are being used in the first person, it's probably a good idea to take a prophylactic measure and speak to a lawyer.

9873cPi.jpg
 
C. Stockwell said:
I think you're right that the seller is in deeper poo than OP, but when the words "ATF" and "seizure" are being used in the first person, it's probably a good idea to take a prophylactic measure and speak to a lawyer.
Click to expand...

Oh I fully agree, its definitely not a bad idea at all.
 

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