International Business Times reports
U.S. Marines at Camp Lejeune, N.C., stole and sold approximately $2 million in guns and combat equipment to streets gangs and to China and Russia, military officials confirmed. The stolen guns and combat gear included assault rifles, night-vision goggles and flashlights.More than 60 people have been implicated in the incident, the Daily News in Jacksonville, N.C., reported. 47 service members and 21 civilians have been charged so far. Several of them have already pleaded guilty, Ed Buice, public affairs officer for Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) in Quantico, Va., told the paper.
It seems like there's a lot more to "theft," as one of the main sources of guns going to criminals than your proverbial revolver being stolen out of the night stand or glove box. This is theft on an entirely different level.
Although the case is ongoing, what do you think about the sentences already handed down?
Do those sentences seem a bit light to you? I would have expected a harsher treatment of Marines involved in something like this.That paper said that two Marines have been convicted in the case. They are Sgt. Daniel Adam Reich and Capt. Donald E. Pump Jr. Reich was convicted Monday of selling and attempting to sell military property and conspiracy. He was sentenced to 40 months in prison and given a dishonorable discharge.Pump was convicted of similar offenses, sentenced to 18 months in prison and dismissed from the Corps.
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.
The sentence is way too light and this is another shining example why gun control doesn't work. The criminals will ALWAYS get guns.
ReplyDeleteI have stated this several times. Criminals will obtain guns one way or another. As I pointed out before, a criminal can make a single shot 20 or 12 gauge shotgun ("zip gun") out of $20 worth of parts from a local hardware store. Or an enterprising criminal can pay a local machine shop to make parts and then assemble the gun himself. Of course if he goes through that much trouble, he will start selling them to others and make some real money. And then this story highlights how people can steal firearms from military and police armories.
DeleteI remember seeing an interview with a gang member from LA (I believe a member of the Crips) who explained that the larger, better organized gangs liked gun control laws, because it kept them safer from smaller, disorganized gangs, while their organization allowed them to purchase fully automatic AK-47s (illegally imported) for around $300.
DeleteAn actual assault rifle, illegally imported, cost $300. That cost takes into account acquiring the rifle (probably from Eastern Europe), shipping it to North America, smuggling it across the border, and getting it to LA.
If criminals will always get guns, then why was there so much talk about UK criminals resorting to knives?
DeleteIt's because criminals will only get guns if they are available. If gun availability were severely diminished, some criminals would have to resort to knives like in the UK. Multiple killings would decline, overall murder rates too - like in the UK.
"If criminals will always get guns, then why was there so much talk about UK criminals resorting to knives?"
DeleteUK doesn't have gun control, the UK has gun bans. They are not allowed to own handguns and ammunition is strictly regulated.
"If gun availability were severely diminished"
Putting any civil rights violations aside, it's a little late to close the barn doors, the horses are out playing with the cows and chickens. There are 270M firearms in the hands of the civilian population, keeping tabs on all of these unregistered firearms is outside the ability of any government. Even if there was a requirement to possess a firearm owner ID card (Chicago style) in order to purchase a firearm, this would still not prevent criminals from selling firearms to other criminals.
MikeB,
DeleteIf your statement about knives in the U.K. is true, I have a simple question. Does a criminal with a firearm face more convictions and longer prison sentences if they are caught with a firearm versus being caught with a knife? I have another question. How much does a criminal have to pay for a firearm? How much cheaper is a knife?
Let's note that gun control is easier to pull off in Britain. It had many fewer privately held guns to start with, and it's surrounded by nations that also have strict gun control. Even if gun control were desirable in America, it would be much more difficult to pull off.
DeleteCapn, are you admitting finally that the old adage, "criminals will always get guns" is wrong?
DeleteMaybe these are some of the first sentencings based on plea bargains for testifying against others.
ReplyDeleteAren't they demonstrating that if you want to be a thief of consequence, you have to be involved with the government?
ReplyDeleteHow does this changes the narrative of “ALL crime guns go through legal hands first” when these went straight from the government to the criminal underworld without passing through civilians? Can we get the “all” changed to a “most” in light of this?
ReplyDeleteThey were legally owned by the Marine Corps before they were stolen. Just like any gun theft from a lawful owner.
DeleteI'm sure guns are also stolen from the gun manufacturers.
The all was already changed to "almost all," not because of this, but because of the tiny few guns that are home manufactured.
I'm curious Mike, should the sentence be lighter for someone who admits their guilt of having bought or sold guns illegally? Surely such a scoundrel should still have some price to pay.
ReplyDeleteWhoa there. I think we can all agree that there should be special exceptions. Not everyone who illegally bought guns a long time ago is a "hidden criminal" you know.
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