I’ve been selling guns on and off for almost thirty years. Just when I think there’s not much out there to surprise me, something comes along I havent seen before.
Today, I got the following email in my box:
ATF.FFL.Alert@usdoj.gov <ATF.FFL.Alert@usdoj.gov>
Jun 6 at 10:27 AMThis is an important message from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. A suspicious individual attempted to purchase a “precision rifle” firearm that “could make a 1000 yard shot in order to shoot children, then adults” from an FFL in Broadwater county, MT. The suspect is described as a white male, mid to late 50’s, 5’10”, 180-200 lbs., brown/grey hair, brown eyes, wearing a long sleeve orange t-shirt (“Staff”/”Support”?) dark jeans, green hat. See photo below. The suspect was driving a dark sedan (possibly a Buick/Ford) late 1990’s-2000, Montana plate beginning with “4”. If you come into contact with this individual, please contact the Broadwater County Sheriff’s Office at (406) 266-3441 or ATF Helena at (406) 441-3140.
Ok, thats a bit odd. Here’s where it gets really weird. About five minutes after I got that email, my phone rings and I get a robocall from ATFE with the exact same message. I have never heard of ATFE sending out BOLO robocalls before. Also, I suspect that with all this effort being made by ATFE there is more to this story than meets the eye.
But…first time I ever got a robocall about something suspicious from the goons at F Troop.
Anti-gunner.
They might be looking for a guy named Lon Horiuchi…. no wait he’s not a white male he’s Asian.
Zero
I have to say it’s a freaky weird agency. I once had an FFL in the mid nineties. When they upped the fee to 200.00 for every 3 years I said good bye to that. Then several years ago I apply for a C&R license. Reasonable 30.00 every 3 years. But when I applied I forgot to give a reason for why I let my original FFL lapse. So they denied the C&R app. No biggie but then this chick from ATF calls me and says we have your app for C&R. I said yeah but you denied it. She goes well why did you let FFl lapse. I tell her and she says jus put the reason on the app and we will get your C&R license squared away. So they were that hard up for 30.00 and for me to get license. Weird.
C&R??
curios & relics
Anon
curio and Relics license. This allow you to buy any weapon, with exceptions ( Like AK-47 style being the most prominent ) that is over 50 years old or more. So SKS and all their variants are OK, but not large mag fed AK style stuff. Any WW2 or earlier bolt actio rifle and semi autos as long as they don’t have the liberal hated 30 Rd mag or any other onerous “ assault style “ gadgetry adorned upon it. So pistols like the TTC Tokarev, P64, etc also qualify. These are all solid weapons and can be had for reasonable prices for either use or collectibility.
Not correct. The “style” has nothing to do with it. By law, there are 3 criteria for a firearm being a “curio or relic” and only one needs to be met to make a firearm a “C&R”:
1) At least 50 years old. The “style” does not matter. There are C&R AR15s. There are even C&R machine guns and other NFA “firearms.” There aren’t any C&R AK47-style semiauto rifles — yet — simply because they did not go into production until the 1980s. Actual select-fire military AK47s — unless they were amnesty-registered in 1968 or otherwise added to the NFA registry prior to 1986 — are contraband under the NFA. Come 2030-something there will be C&R Maadis, etc. An NFA registered AK47 manufactured 50 years ago is a C&R at present. I believe there are Viet Nam bring-backs that were registered during the ’68 amnesty: these would be C&Rs and thus can be transferred across state lines by a Type 3 (C&R) FFL using the same Form 4 used by commercial FFLs to transfer other NFA firearms.
2) Be on the C&R List. Relatively few firearms have been added to the C&R List since it was first created in 1968, but being on the list is not required for a firearm to be a C&R.
3) Be certified by a museum curator, etc, as historically significant.
Criteria 2 and 3 are of little real significance. Most of the additions to the List since 1968 have been by individual requests to the ATF for particular individual firearms that would have already been eligible under the 50 year criteria. A few additions have been useful: post-1945 Mausers and Lee-Enfields, CZ Vz82s, Polish P64s, etc.
Whenever I see something like this I’m reminded of something FDR once said:
“In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
Mike:
I get what you are saying, but don’t forget how LOW the ATFE set the bar when it comes to common sense!
Some antifa probably saw someone trying to legally buy a target rifle and called in a premeditatedly scary hoax…
It was probably easier than putting out a press release saying one of their federal agents had gone a little, y’know…”funny in the head”.
There is absolutely no valid reason for you to say ANYTHING, EVER to any credentialed law enforcement officer. Perjury traps are used all the time. Just ask the President. No good will come of it.
Absolutely correct. Just be nice and say nothing
Likely a lead-in to another “do it for the children” campaign. Notice how now it sounds like they are going after rifles that are accurate.
Or, far more likely, there is actually some loony talking crazy stuff trying to buy a “precision” rifle with the intent of doing something heinous.