Navy Master at Arms Convicted of NFA/GCA violations

Darksideblues42

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On my phone, searched for keywords, might be a dupe.

In what looks like a flawed prosecution by the AFT, a navy Master at Arms was convicted for having destructive devices and machine gun violations.

He had a demilled RPG launcher with a hole in the tube and a steel rod where the trigger group should have been. The ATF patched the hole, loaded a 7.62 training barrel into the tube and installed a working trigger group, then fired the training round and declared that the launcher was ready to fire an RPG.

An informant claimed the sailor had an M249 in his home - the sailor said it was an airsoft training mock up, which it was. But the AFT decided it is was enough to open an investigation.

They sent an informant to buy a cut MG42 kit that was demilled in the past with a single saw cut at the time that was still allowed. The sailor bought it on gun broker and sold it to the informant.

The sailor had a 40mm trigger group purchased from Big Daddy in a safe in one part of his home, and a barrel for the same launcher in a totally different safe in a different room. The AFT decided this was constructive possession.

The AFT told the jury that a stack of Mac flats were machine guns because the sailor owned a wet saw. The wet saw in question was being used to cut tile for his bathroom remodel.

All in all, this guy got railroaded.

 
I read that the ATF raised his house…..but no FBI killing his wife and burning his house to the ground? Those HRT guys must be pissed they missed out on this one.
 
I’ve seen a few of those single saw cut mg 42 come across Gunbroker and even debated on picking one up. Maybe I better stick with the torch cut bren kits. 😁
 
On my phone, searched for keywords, might be a dupe.

In what looks like a flawed prosecution by the AFT, a navy Master at Arms was convicted for having destructive devices and machine gun violations.

He had a demilled RPG launcher with a hole in the tube and a steel rod where the trigger group should have been. The ATF patched the hole, loaded a 7.62 training barrel into the tube and installed a working trigger group, then fired the training round and declared that the launcher was ready to fire an RPG.

An informant claimed the sailor had an M249 in his home - the sailor said it was an airsoft training mock up, which it was. But the AFT decided it is was enough to open an investigation.

They sent an informant to buy a cut MG42 kit that was demilled in the past with a single saw cut at the time that was still allowed. The sailor bought it on gun broker and sold it to the informant.

The sailor had a 40mm trigger group purchased from Big Daddy in a safe in one part of his home, and a barrel for the same launcher in a totally different safe in a different room. The AFT decided this was constructive possession.

The AFT told the jury that a stack of Mac flats were machine guns because the sailor owned a wet saw. The wet saw in question was being used to cut tile for his bathroom remodel.

All in all, this guy got railroaded.

So much bullshit here. I tiled two bathrooms, a kitchen and a patio with a wet saw that I purchased from Floor & Decor years ago. Sold it to a friend after the job was completed. My wife owns a Ruger 10/22 that we both fire more than any other of our guns. There are plenty of online instructions about how to fit them with suppressors, convert to full auto fire, etc. I am sure that ATF technicians could easily turn a plain vanilla 10/22 into a suppressed full auto monster. They have the tools and know-how; I don't.
 
This sounds like one of those “Play stupid games, win stupid prizes” situations to me.

Dave
Really? Complying with the law and planning to expand to NFA items in the future is playing stupid games?

I had more to say, but it isn’t very nice. So I’ll just say I hope you reconsider your 2A perspective.

The AFT was extremely disingenuous with everything they presented to the jury. The one thing that could have convicted him was the single-cut MG42 receiver, which is no longer a valid de-milling technique, but was in the past and could easily be chocked up to the AFT’s never-stable policies being confusing.
 
He had a demilled RPG launcher with a hole in the tube and a steel rod where the trigger group should have been. The ATF patched the hole, loaded a 7.62 training barrel into the tube and installed a working trigger group, then fired the training round and declared that the launcher was ready to fire an RPG.
Sounds like they're the ones doing the "construction"...
 
Sounds like they're the ones doing the "construction"...
Remember the AR that was lent out to some one that "Double Tapped", and ATF had to do enough testing with various ammo to get the rifle to repeat that event? Then they had the guy convicted of having a "machine gun". Actually they are F**K UPS right from the beginning. This case is from their early days of criminal malfeasance.

Ken Ballew raid.​

The best part of any ATF agent ran down the crack of their whore mother's a$$ and on to the ground in the alley.
 
Sounds like they're the ones doing the "construction"...
It seems like their point was that a single hole wasn't sufficient to demill the RPG.

Plus, who demills a MG42 with a few saw cuts??? How did either of these get past any sort of former ATF scrutiny??? It isn't like piles of post-sample MG42's are sitting around getting demilled or something. Did someone import a single MG42 at some point??? And if so, why demill it???? Why not find a way to get it in "legally" and sell it for a whole bunch more????

He got hosed for sure, but he probably should have suspected problems with the MG42 at the very least. Hell, the whole MG42 thing is stupid. If it was illegal to sell, why not just bust the FFL that listed it???? Why go through teh trouble of busting the poor guy that was brokering the deal???? It's like they have small-peenie syndrome over at the ATF.
 
It seems like their point was that a single hole wasn't sufficient to demill the RPG.

Plus, who demills a MG42 with a few saw cuts??? How did either of these get past any sort of former ATF scrutiny??? It isn't like piles of post-sample MG42's are sitting around getting demilled or something. Did someone import a single MG42 at some point??? And if so, why demill it???? Why not find a way to get it in "legally" and sell it for a whole bunch more????

He got hosed for sure, but he probably should have suspected problems with the MG42 at the very least. Hell, the whole MG42 thing is stupid. If it was illegal to sell, why not just bust the FFL that listed it???? Why go through teh trouble of busting the poor guy that was brokering the deal???? It's like they have small-peenie syndrome over at the ATF.
Just maybe that FFL was on the "Hook" if he did not play as directed. The ATF is well noted for this, does Randy Weaver ring a bell?
 
Plus, who demills a MG42 with a few saw cuts??? How did either of these get past any sort of former ATF scrutiny??? It isn't like piles of post-sample MG42's are sitting around getting demilled or something.

You act like someone sits around combing through piles of junk that gets imported, in the RealWorld(TM) that doesnt actually happen. Also over time the standards for demilling things changed probably several times. So if you have a device that was an "anachronism" and stored in some guys junk closet, because of ATF fiat that thing that was cut one wy has now become "illegal" because of the standards changing.

Think of it like those Mac 10/11 semis that got legally made with an open bolt... [rofl] One day legal, another day ATF is like BWEAHHHHZOMG OPEN BOLT SEMI = BAD!!! etc. but yet you know somewhere, one of those guns is still sitting in someones safe.

Did someone import a single MG42 at some point??? And if so, why demill it???? Why not find a way to get it in "legally" and sell it for a whole bunch more????

None of that makes sense, after the 86 ban you couldn't import anything that was a functional machinegun and register it, and actually foreign machineguns had more garbage applied to them even before 86. So demilled kits ultimately was the only way for a lot of guns. People demill them for parts, parts value probably still higher than scrap metal.
 
“We’re going to show you how he could have broken the law, even though he didn’t do what we’re going to show you, to prove that he was breaking the law… by not doing the illegal thing we’re showing.

That sounds incredibly Monty python like. What's worse is that sounds exactly how this prosecution went.
 
They have bragged about doing this sort of crap before.
I'm not sure which is more corrupt them or the FBI , both need to go .
Let them work mall security somewhere. On second thought screw that , they would probably be popping the Grannies and Grandpas doing the morning Mall walks.
Useless , corrupt , pathetic excuses for human beings .
The only ones stupid enough to give them any kind of authority is an even more corrupt government.
 
It seems like their point was that a single hole wasn't sufficient to demill the RPG.

Plus, who demills a MG42 with a few saw cuts??? How did either of these get past any sort of former ATF scrutiny??? It isn't like piles of post-sample MG42's are sitting around getting demilled or something. Did someone import a single MG42 at some point??? And if so, why demill it???? Why not find a way to get it in "legally" and sell it for a whole bunch more????

He got hosed for sure, but he probably should have suspected problems with the MG42 at the very least. Hell, the whole MG42 thing is stupid. If it was illegal to sell, why not just bust the FFL that listed it???? Why go through teh trouble of busting the poor guy that was brokering the deal???? It's like they have small-peenie syndrome over at the ATF.
Every variety of machine gun parts kit has been imported into this country at different times and in different quantities. As was already stated, the “destruction” standards used to be less strict for imported firearms, You used to be able to get single cut VZ58s with intact trunnions too. Single cut MGs are becoming scarce but they’re not uncommon.
 
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