Failed Gun Sting Allows 1,700 Wepons to "Walk" to MX

[RoyGBiv]

Obama Administration Under Mounting Pressure for Botched Gun Trafficking Investigation

Under Project Gunrunner and the Phoenix off-shoot, dubbed Fast and Furious, the ATF encouraged gun store owners to sell to straw buyers -- consumers who they suspected of working on behalf of Mexican drug cartels.

Project Gunrunner purposely allowed the straw buyers to illegally buy and export guns only to see where they surfaced in Mexico. Using this investigative technique, the ATF hoped to take down the entire gun trafficking organization. Instead, records show it allowed more than 1,700 guns, including hundreds of AK-47s and high-powered, armor-piercing .50-caliber rifles to be trafficked to Mexico

Buying guns for non-personal use is illegal. Yet gun store owners were assured by ATF agents the buyers were under investigation and the guns were being intercepted before crossing into Mexico.

AFT's gunrunning investigations were supposed to stem the flow of guns, like these, bought by U.S. straw buyers and sold in Mexico.

Instead, whistleblowers say the guns were allowed "to walk."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/03 ... z1HvFakZaq" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[RPB]

Disband and de-fund the ATF and a lot of problems would go away.
We have plenty of other agencies which can monitor stuff.

[RoyGBiv]

I recall a thread here a month or so ago about South Texas gun dealers getting busted for straw sales. I hope that none of them were charged with anything for participating in this sting under pressure from ATF and Justice.

I'm sure there's no apology forthcoming for the bad press they had to put up with either.