1,700 Rifles Seized by U.S and Canada

T

TheBluesMan

Moderator Emeritus
Source

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Canadian, U.S. Police Seize 1,700 Rifles, Ammunition

TORONTO (Reuters) - More than 1,700 military rifles and ammunition for them have been seized by Canadian and U.S. police in one of the largest cross-border weapons smuggling cases ever exposed, Toronto police said Tuesday.

Police said the weapons, including three machine guns and 1,709 M1 Grand Rifles, were similar to those used by the U.S. military forces in World War Two and in the Korean War. All are believed to be in good working order.

Police also confiscated 39 illegal high-capacity M1 magazine cartridges, 100 M1 Grand Barrels and 21,139 receivers for the rifles in separate searches in Toronto, Montreal and Reno, Nevada.

Police said Paul Gardner of Kingston, Tennessee, and Jerome June, of Rochester, New York, were arrested in connection with the case and face charges of possession of restricted weapons. They were both released from custody and will appear in a Canadian court Thursday.

A third suspect was still being sought.

Toronto police spokesman Sergeant Frederick Ellarby said the weapons would probably be destroyed.

"The guns will probably be destroyed but it is all up to the courts," he told Reuters.

The arrests follow a year-long investigation by the Ontario Provincial Weapons Enforcement Unit, the Toronto Police Firearms Office, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and the Canadian and the U.S. customs services.

Police refused to comment on why the guns were being smuggled.

Toronto Police Superintendent Ron Taverner of the Special Investigation Services, is expected to release more details about the case at a news conference later Tuesday.[/quote]

This might be nit-picking, but I’m annoyed by the constant misspelling of "Garand" by the lazy, brainless reporter. And where is the mention of ammunition in the story? I also wonder exactly what "illegal high-capacity M1 magazine cartridges" are. :confused:

The operation seems to be a clean bust of some illegal arms smugglers. Anyone want to venture a guess as to *where* these rifles came from? My bet: The United States Civilian Marksmanship Program. If this turns out to be the case, the antis will voice their collective disgust for the government selling "evil guns" to the public, and you can say goodbye to Camp Perry and the CMP. :(


------------------
RKBA!
"The people have the right to bear arms for their defense and security"
Ohio Constitution, Article I, Section 4 Concealed Carry is illegal in Ohio.
Ohioans for Concealed Carry Website

[This message has been edited by TheBluesMan (edited May 02, 2000).]
 
TBM, that Grand (sic) thing was the first bit to catch my eye.

Police refused to comment on why the guns were being smuggled.

Gee, could it be because someone was willing to pay for them and couldn't get them legally? :confused:

Kiss them CMP Garands goodbye, fellas. :(
 
Where they being smuggled into the US or being smuggled Canada? They could have been exported weapons being illegally brought back into the United States.
 
Destroy the Garands? I'm gonna cry! :(

How did they get ahold of 1,700 of them?
All I want is one! Did they steal them from Camp Perry? You can only buy 2 a year...
 
TBeck,

You ask a good question. From what I understand, Garands are available and somewhat inexpensive in Canada. I would assume that the guns were being smuggled into the United States. I read of a similar story of a man in Arizona who got busted trying to do the same thing. The only thing was, that he was busted at his home with the smuggled guns in his house.

Joe

http://second.amendment.homepage.com
 
I'm sure they weren't from the Civilian Marksmanship Program. They were probably guns that the US gave to allies that the suspects were trying to reimport into the US. For some very strange reason, understood only by the ATF, it is illegal to import a Garand into the US.

Jared
 
Thanks M1911, I didn't know that.

I guess I hadn't considered that they could be coming *into* the U.S. *from* Canada. I just assumed that they had been stolen from a CMP warehouse, or ordered illegally through a phony rifle club or something.

Anyone see an update on this story?


------------------
RKBA!
"The people have the right to bear arms for their defense and security"
Ohio Constitution, Article I, Section 4 Concealed Carry is illegal in Ohio.
Ohioans for Concealed Carry Website
 
The lowdown from someone on another forum...

"this whole deal is an outgrowth of last weeks ATF raid on mel bishop, noted garand crank in Reno for importing M1 garand parts for several vendors in queerbec and ontario. The word is that he had shipped in garand bbls and various other parts which are barred by klintongs EO barring import of US provided items...the word from north of the border is that NO actual firearms or receivers were shipped but importing even a buttplate screw is none the less a felony violation of klintongs mandate...the shops in canada were raided as part of a international conspiracy investigation by CSIS, the canuck federal investigative branch after customs notified ATF about the garand bbls Mel was importing...Its all a bunch of bull**** and the numbers involved are mostly receivers that were torn down for parts...rumor has it that one of the vendors raided was Marstar tho I have been unable to verify that directly...1000s of garands were imported into canada by the montreal division of Century Arms and after klintongs mandate they sold the remainder to several major parts outfits in canada who unaware of the latest changes in US law continued to ship parts stateside...I have tried to warn folks to watch themselves on bringing parts in without the benifit of a approved 6 but some peole push the envelope and this is the result...the 39 high cap clips were M1 carbine 15rd mags that were outlawed in the peoples republic of canada some time back but are still very common north of the border as are other high caps...its all a big media/political bunch opf **** and the canuck police can seize guns for the most illigit reasons...even if a neighbor complains about you shooting on your farm...in this case they seized all M1 parts as the were relative to the international "conspiracy" to violate klintongs ****ty EO...I'll post more info as I hear it but that all I know currently."


What it boils down to is this, firearms that were given to another country in some sort of military assistance package cannot be imported back into the U.S. due to one of Clinton's MANY executive orders!

Vote for Bush! Let's get that EO rescinded. D)

Joe

http://second.amendment.homepage.com
 
Vintage Gun Smuggling Operation Busted
Collectible Rifles Shipped From Canada to U.S.

May 2, 2000

By Seamus McGraw

TORONTO (APBnews.com) -- Police in Canada seized more than 1,700 vintage M-1 rifles --
enough to outfit two infantry battalions -- and smashed one of the largest cross-border gun
smuggling operations in recent history, authorities said today.

Authorities said the ring, which is suspected of smuggling thousands of guns from Canada to the
United States, was the brainchild of Melvin Bishop, a gun dealer with shops in Toronto and Reno,
Nev.

Working with partners in Reno, Montreal and Toronto, Bishop allegedly arranged to collect
thousands of World War II vintage rifles, said Inspector Bob Frolic of the Ontario Provincial Police
Weapons Enforcement Unit. The accused smugglers stuffed the guns and replacement parts into
boxes marked "truck parts" and shipped them to the United States for sale, Frolic said.

Although cross-border gun smuggling is not unusual, the weapons most often are headed in the
other direction, Frolic said.

"We usually get all the guns coming from the U.S. to Canada," Frolic said. "This is the first time that
I've seen this many weapons headed toward the United States."

Hard to legally obtain the weapons

But investigators say there may have been a good reason for the alleged smugglers to set up
shop in Canada.

The .30-caliber rifles, which were carried by American servicemen throughout World War II and the
Korean War, are popular among American gun collectors and history buffs.

But there's a dwindling supply of the 50-year-old weapons in the United States, and it's difficult to
legally import them. Using licensed dealers in Canada, the conspirators allegedly were able to cull
weapons and replacement parts from collectors and military units from all over the world, and then
channel them back into the United States, Frolic said.

Investigators in Canada got wind of the scheme about a year ago, Frolic said, when a shipment of
weapons was intercepted by Canadian and U.S. Customs officials and U.S. Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms agents.

$1,000 in collectibles probably will be destroyed

Authorities on both sides of the border launched a yearlong investigation, Frolic said.

On Monday, authorities raided gun shops in Toronto and Reno, along with two other gun shops in
Toronto and Montreal. In all, they confiscated 1,709 rifles, 21,139 receivers -- the chassis that
contains the firing mechanism -- 39 illegal large-capacity magazines, 100 rifle barrels and three
antique machine guns.

Ira Mieteen of Toronto was arrested, and a Canada-wide arrest warrant was issued for Bishop on
charges of conspiring to knowingly export firearms without authorization, authorities said. The pair
also faces charges in the United States, along with a third man who remained at large today,
authorities said. The name of the third suspect has not been released.

The rifles -- valued at $1,000 apiece -- will probably be destroyed, Canadian officials said.


Seamus McGraw is an APBnews.com staff writer (seamus.mcgraw@apbnews.com).
http://www.apbnews.com/newscenter/breakingnews/2000/05/02/guns0502_01.html
 
Cops: Canada, US Gun-Smuggling Nixed http://wire.ap.org/APnews/center_story.html?FRONTID=CANADA&STORYID=APIS747LN080
By TOM COHEN
Associated Press Writer

TORONTO (AP) — A smuggling ring that transported vintage World War II rifles from Canada to the United States
in containers marked ``truck parts'' has been broken up, police said Tuesday.

Describing the bust as the biggest of its kind in North America, Canadian and U.S. officials said the smugglers
operated in Toronto, Montreal and Reno, Nev.

Police executing search warrants in both countries seized more than 1,700 M1 Garand semiautomatic rifles, along
with more than 20,000 M1 carriers — the main component of the rifle — and 39 banned high-capacity M1
magazines. Three machine guns also were seized.

Det. Sgt. Harvey Williams of Ontario's Provincial Weapons Enforcement Unit said the firearms were vintage U.S.
military rifles from World War II and the Korean war.

U.S. law generally prohibits the import of military weaponry previously sent out of the country, Williams said.
The smuggling ring was transporting the weapons back to the United States, probably for collectors who pay $500
or more for an M1 Garand in good working condition, he said.

Police arrested Ira Mieteen, 38, of Toronto, and issued a Canadian-wide arrest warrant for a second man, Melvin
Bishop of Reno, on charges of conspiring to knowingly export firearms without authorization. Mieteen, who also
was charged with gun trafficking and other counts, has been released on bail, Williams said.

A U.S. grand jury has been convened in Reno for Mieteen, Bishop and another Reno resident, police said. The name
of the third suspect was not disclosed.

The charges followed a yearlong investigation of cross-border gun smuggling that began when Canadian
firearms regulators in New Brunswick notified police of a large shipment of weapons. Police discovered that some
Toronto businesses were illegally shipping M1 carriers into the United States and marking them as ``truck
parts.''

An operation involving U.S. and Canadian Customs services and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
intercepted one of the illegal shipments in Atlanta, then linked it to a licensed gun dealer in Reno, according to a
police statement.

Searches were conducted at Mel Bishop Enterprises in Toronto and Reno, Century International Arms in Montreal
and King Sol in Toronto, the statement said.

In the United States, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms spokeswoman Marti McKee confirmed that a Reno
residence was searched April 18 in connection with the case. She said no further information was available.

Investigators were trying to determine where the weapons came from, Williams said, noting that importing and
possessing such rifles was legal in Canada. It's different south of the border, he said.
 
Gun-Smuggling Ring Busted
U.S., Canadian Agents Seize 23,000 Guns and Parts http://abcnews.go.com/sections/world/DailyNews/gun_smuggling000502.html

By Carter M. Yang

May 2 — One of the largest international gun-smuggling rings in
history has been busted by a joint U.S.-Canadian operation,
officials in both countries say.
“It’s our belief that this is the largest international firearms smuggling
case to date,” Toronto police Superintendent Ron Taverner said this
afternoon.
A yearlong investigation culminated last month in a series of armed
raids in Toronto, Montreal and
Reno, Nev., according to U.S.
and Canadian law enforcement
sources. Large caches of
firearms and parts — mainly of
the reliable and well-regarded
M1 Garand, a rifle used by the
U.S. military during World
War II and the Korean War —
were seized in each city and at
least one arrest was made. The
weapons were intended for sale
in the United States, sources
said.
“They are an excellent
battle rifle,” explained Toronto
police Staff Sgt. Fred Ellarby.
“They are very effective
weapons.”
Although Canadian law
enforcement officials say the recent raids effectively shut down the
smuggling operation, the investigation is still ongoing and future arrests are
likely, U.S. and Canadian officials said.
Ira Mieteen of Toronto, 38, was arrested for firearms trafficking and
four other related charges and a Canada-wide arrest warrant has been
issued for Melvin Bishop of Reno on a charge of conspiracy to knowingly
export firearms without authorization, officials said.
A grand jury has been convened in Reno to consider charges against
Mieteen, Bishop and a third suspect — possibly a man who worked at the
Reno/Tahoe International Airport, officials said.
“Our investigation here in Reno is very much alive and active at this
point,” said Marti McKee, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms.


Project Driveshaft
The operation, dubbed Project Driveshaft, was initiated by Toronto police
and Canada’s Provincial Weapons Enforcement Unit in May, 1999, who
were then joined by ATF as well as the U.S. and Canadian Customs
services.
Police said they seized thousands of parts crucial to guns: 21,139 M1
Garand receivers; 1,709 assembled M1 Garand rifles suspected to be fully
operational; 100 M1 barrels; 39 prohibited high-capacity magazines; and
three machine guns, also believed to be fully operational. The M1 Garand
is a U.S.-designed World War II-vintage semiautomatic rifle. The receiver
is the main part of the weapon that contains the firing mechanism and serial
number, and under Canadian law, it is treated the same as a fully assembled
rifle.
Search warrants were executed at the King Sol store in Toronto and Mel
Bishop Enterprises in Toronto and Reno on April 18, and Century Arms in
Montreal on April 19. Prior to the raids, a shipment of firearm receivers
from Toronto marked “truck parts” was spotted in Atlanta and then
tracked to Reno.
Taverner said that the U.S.-manufactured guns were shipped to a third
country, then to Canada and then illegally shipped back into the United
States.
“People that can have access to guns by the thousands and are moving
them around become an international problem,” added the Toronto
police’s Ellarby. “[If] these things were going to the U.S. … you have to
wonder who’s buying them. There are very few legitimate groups that are
looking to buy a thousand M1s.”
But U.S. law enforcement sources, speaking on condition of anonymity,
say there is no evidence that the rifles were intended for subversive or
terrorist groups.
Law enforcement officials on both sides of the border credit the success
of the investigation to the cooperation among all of the agencies involved.
A statement issued on behalf of the Toronto police’s Taverner and ATF
Attaché David Krieghbaum hailed the operation as “an excellent example
of modern law enforcement exhibiting a great deal of cooperation between
U.S. and Canadian law enforcement officials which resulted in the breakup
of a major international smuggling operation.”
------------------------------
What Was Seized

Details of what Toronto police say was seized:
1,709 M1 Garand rifles. The rifle is a semiautomatic,
gas-operated .30-caliber rifle adopted by the U.S. Army in 1936. The
Garand was the first semiautomatic military rifle used as a standard
combat shoulder weapon and was the basic U.S. infantry weapon in both
World War II and the Korean War. The M1 still serves in the training
rifle role for the U.S. Navy.
21,139 M1 Garand receivers. The receivers are the frame of
the M1 Garand rifle. All parts of the weapon are built into the receiver,
much like the parts of a car are built into its frame.
100 M1 Garand gun barrels.
39 Prohibited High Capacity Magazines, also known as
"clips." The magazine is what holds the ammunition cartridges, and is
detachable from the receiver.
3 machine guns, believed to be “fully operational.”
-------------------------------------
 
I believe that the re-importing of any of the military aid type weapons is illegal...something like we GAVE them away for free so don't want to pay to take them back is the reasoning.

I believe that is one of the factors affecting the prices of M1 CARBINES in the US.

------------------
There can be only one!
 
Glamdring,

The reason the rifles can't come back into the country, is because Clinton signed a damned executive order saying they couldn't.

Vote Bush!

Joe
 
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