parts, declared to be American-made and shipped through wholesalers to local gun dealers for sale with high-capacity magazines, bayonets and the other features of a bargain assault weapon.The WASR-10 has become a favorite of the Mexican drug cartels and in recent years hundreds of them have been traced to crimes in Mexico.īack in 2009, more than 50 mostly-Democratic members of Congress pleaded with the Obama Administration to alter its interpretation of the “sporting purposes” law to close what they saw as a loophole-something they claimed the President could do through executive order. The weapons are then modified with a few U.S. Foreign guns like the WASR-10 are shipped here stripped of their military features so they can be treated as “sporting” guns. shores -weapons like the Romanian made WASR-10, a fearsome version of the iconic AK-47.įoreign-made guns without a “sporting” purpose, like hunting or target shooting, are barred from import, but clever importers have found a completely legal way around the law. But as the Center for Public Integrity reported last year, powerful imported semiautomatic weapons have also been a problem, despite a long-standing law designed to keep them from U.S.
Interactive websites detailing many aspects of the flow of American guns to Mexico can be found at the Investigative Reporting Workshop, FRONTLINE, and InSight.Įditor’s note: Since the tragic carnage in Newtown, Conn., much of the talk in Washington has focused on reinstating the domestic assault weapons ban that existed from 1994 to 2004. This piece is a collaboration between the Center for Public Integrity, the Investigative Reporting Workshop at the American University School of Communication, InSight, FRONTLINE, and the Romanian Centre for Investigative Journalism.
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