Four young students in Samos have found a special, profitable occupation. They were making functional weapons using a 3D printer.
The four young men were arrested in Samos by EL.AS. after first they managed to get into the eye of the EYP and they are additionally accused of manufacturing weapons and drug trafficking.
Among those arrested is one college student of the Polytechnic, who had communication via the internet with a man outside the European Union, who asked him for his help in technological support for the manufacture of weapons. This man was spreading the wordnetwork that it is easy to manufacture a weapon with the help of a 3D printer.
But he had already come under the crosshairs of the authorities in his country as he had already been accused there of spreading via the internet a manual for the construction of improvised explosive weapons and devices. This is how the EYP was notified, which in turn monitored the 4 young men in Samos.
EYP saw that the 20-year-old student had ordered a 3D printer from Germany and that the gang was ready to start manufacturing weapons. The problem in making weapons was in the metal moving parts but according to the man's instructions I could find them from clink-flash weapons.
So they ordered flash guns from America and converted them to regular ones. They managed to manufacture two pistols, a glock and a mac as well as a semi-automatic UZI type, all unmarked, without serial number, undeclared and particularly difficult to trace.
And they started looking for potential buyers, with a price list of 350 euros each for pistols and 800 euros for semi-automatics.
The prospect of the release of such weapons on the market rang a bell in the EYP and thus requested from EL.AS. to proceed with the immediate arrest of the 19-year-old and the entire gang and to confiscate all the infrastructure.
See below announcement of EL.AS.:
Greek police headquarters
Athens, 23 February 2024
PRESS RELEASE
Disruption of a criminal organization whose members were active in the production and manufacture of weapons using a 3D printer, in their marketing and distribution, as well as in the trafficking of narcotics in the area of Samos
-4- citizens were arrested ages 19 to 20 years old
Among other things, a 3D printer, computers, cell phones telephones, stun guns and folding knives
The Department of Prosecution of Criminal Organizations and Transnational Affairs of the Sub-Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Human Trafficking of the Attica Security Directorate dismantled a criminal organization whose members were active in the production and manufacture of weapons using a 3D printer, in their marketing and disposal, as well as in the trafficking of narcotics in the area of Samos.
In order to deconstruct the organization, a police operation was carried out in the morning hours on Wednesday, February 21, 2024, with the assistance of police officers from the YA. Samos and T.A. Kozani, during which -4- citizens, members of the organization, aged 19 to 20 years, were arrested and a case file was filed against them for criminal organization, drug trafficking, as well as manufacture, possession and trade-disposal of weapons.
Following an evaluation and appropriate use of information provided by the National Intelligence Service, the defendants were identified and the action of a polycriminal group was ascertained, the members of which, at least since December of last year, were trafficking cannabis to third parties residing in Samos, while at the same time possessing bang-flash weapons, which they then converted into functional firearms, as well as producing-manufacturing firearms, using a 3D printer, for the purpose of marketing.
In particular, as emerged after a months-long investigation, the defendants after having procured a 3D printer, which they had installed in the home of a member of the organization and having the necessary knowledge of the specific technology, were proceeding with the production-printing of either stand-alone weapons, or essential spare parts and parts thereof, while at the same time they had procured -2- flashguns, with the aim of converting them into active firearms and their subsequent sale to interested buyers.
In fact, the gang members, using the above equipment, had manufactured a 3D printed semi-automatic carbine, which is a new form of weaponry.
In addition, the defendants procured from unknown persons quantities of narcotic substances - raw cannabis, part of which they stored for personal use, while the rest they sold to third parties residing in Samos against an agreed price, with the aim of obtaining an illegal financial benefit and further continuing of their action.
From the searches carried out in the houses, the following were found and confiscated:
- 3D printing printer (XNUMXDprinter) with the power supply cable and its accessories,
- -5- portable electronic computers,
- -4- spools that contained consumable material – raw material of the 3D printer,
- plastic semi-automatic pistol grip,
- plastic magazine for semi-automatic weapon,
- -6- portable storage media, one of which is connected to the 3D printer,
- -2- folding knives,
- -6- mobile phones,
- -5- hard disks,
- -2- stun guns with -2- magazines, one of which without the plastic part of its handle,
- -4- plastic gun handle parts,
- electronic precision balance,
- -2- metal cannabis graters,
- plastic stock with a semi-automatic weapon trigger mechanism and
- plastic bolt with semi-automatic weapon barrel.
Those arrested with the case filed against them were taken to the competent prosecutor's office.
