3D printed guns found in Scotland for first time

A box of 3D printed firearms components recovered during a Met Police raid in 2022

Firearms made using 3D printers have been discovered in Scotland for the first time, it has been revealed.

Police Scotland confirmed to police magazine 1919, following a freedom of information request, that two incidents involving 3D guns occurred last year.

One incident took place in the Argyll and West Dunbartonshire division in April, followed by another in Tayside a month later.

Forensic services, which also flagged the issue, told the Scottish Police Authority they were handling increasingly complex cases involving such firearms.

Firearms expert David Dyson told the magazine: "(The guns) can be made quite quickly and easily from a 3D printer, and then you need some metal components - it requires a bit of skill but a fairly practical person would be able to do it."

Police Scotland said it was keeping on top of the issue and spoke regularly with bodies such as the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the National Ballistics Intelligence Service (Nabis).

The first operational prototype of the 3D printed gun called the Liberator

What are 3D printed guns?

3D-printed guns are a type of firearms known as ghost guns, lacking serial numbers which makes them harder to trace.

They were initially developed in 2013 by Cody Wilson, the American founder of the gun advocacy group Defence Distributed.

The gun, named the Liberator, was a single-shot weapon, less accurate than an average pistol, and predominantly constructed from plastic.

Wilson subsequently published the blueprints online, triggering a court battle in the US.

The predominantly plastic construction of the gun raised concerns about the potential ability to evade detection by metal detectors.

In 2013, Israeli journalists managed to sneak guns based on Mr Wilson's designs through security and into the country's parliament.

Since then, the technology has developed, involving the use of aluminium in the process, resulting in more reliable guns.

In recent years, the UK has witnessed a growing number of incidents and arrests linked to the production of 3D-printed firearms.

In 2022, authorities seized 17, a notable increase from three in 2021.

Home production of guns and parts has been prohibited under the Firearms Act 1968, effectively banning the creation of 3D firearms in the UK.

In November 2022, the UK government updated legislation to explicitly include these weapons in the 1968 Firearms Act.

The first person in the UK charged with making a gun using a 3D printer was Tendai Muswere in 2019.

The 26-year-old, from Pimlico in London, was jailed for three years for manufacturing the firearm.