Joint operation between the Tax Agency and the National Police

• In the operation, a person who had a clandestine workshop where he assembled firearms whose frames he had previously manufactured using a 3D printer was arrested.
• During the searches carried out, among other items, more than 30 manuals, two 3D printers, 11 filament reels for 3D printers, numerous computer devices used to manufacture weapon parts, 19 handgun frames made using 3D printing and various essential parts were seized; In addition, two taser guns, five knives, a machete, a katana and objects with supremacist symbols were found.
• Given the discovery of various chemical substances, which could be used to make explosives, the intervention of a TEDAX-NRBQ team was necessary to neutralize them, as well as a team of canine guides specialized in the detection of this type of substances.
• Within the framework of the EMPACT-FIREARMS platform, Spain leads the European operational action aimed at defining the new emerging threats in the field of illicit arms trafficking, with the participation of the General Commission of Information and Customs Surveillance of the Tax Agency in relation to the use of parcels in this area.
• An international conference is planned in which the three-dimensional manufacture of weapons will be discussed in depth and Customs will co-lead the action on illicit arms trafficking of the Customs Cooperation Group of the Council of the EU in the period 2020-2021

 April 18, 2021 .- Officials from the Tax Agency and agents of the National Police have dismantled the first illegal 3D weapons manufacturing workshop in Spain following an investigation carried out by Customs Surveillance of the Tax Agency, the General Information Commissioner and the Provincial Information Brigade of Tenerife which has led to the arrest in Santa Cruz de Tenerife of a person for his alleged participation in the crimes of illegal possession of weapons and storage of explosives.

During the searches, two 3D printers, 11 spools of 3D printer filament and numerous computer devices used for manufacturing were seized. In addition, 19 3D-printed handgun frames were seized, along with nine magazines, two silencers, two unnumbered handgun slides, two barrel-rifling parts, two firing pins, an AR-15 Airsoft assault rifle replica, a rifle with a telescopic sight, several metal tubes for making barrels, a holographic sight, a plastic mold for making frames, and various handgun parts (rods, rear sights, front sights, triggers, springs, hammer, etc.).

Agents also located two taser guns, five knives, a machete, a katana, and various objects with supremacist symbols (two flags depicting a triskelion and a gun holster with the emblem of the German National Socialist Army).

Also of particular importance to the researchers was the detection of more than 30 manuals, including: a “terrorist manual”, for urban guerrilla warfare, military, homemade explosives manufacturing, on the use and handling of firearms and the manufacturing of firearms through 3D printing.

Finally, various chemical substances that could be used in the production of explosive devices such as black powder, aluminium, nitrate, acetone, etc. were seized, which is why the intervention of a TEDAX-NRBQ team was required for their neutralisation, as well as a team of Canine Guides specialised in the detection of this type of substances.

The operation, carried out on September 14, 2020, was directed by the Court of Instruction number THREE of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, which has kept the case confidential to date.

First illegal 3D weapons workshop in Spain

The investigation began when agents specialising in the matter detected the existence of a person who was illegally making purchases of essential firearm parts and explosive substances over the Internet.

After analyzing all the information obtained, the corresponding operational device was established, carrying out four searches in the city of Tenerife.

When the agents entered one of the premises, they were able to see that one of the 3D printers was operational and fully functioning. A short weapon frame was being printed and was now practically finished.

The detainee also had a large number of essential parts, all of them complementary for assembly to the 3D manufactured frame. In this way, the arrested person was able to completely manufacture a short firearm.

European Working Group on Combating Emerging Forms of Crime

Additive manufacturing – known as 3D printing – is a disruptive technology that exponentially increases the danger of the proliferation of firearms by facilitating access to them by criminal or terrorist groups. In October 2019, a terrorist attack was carried out against a Jewish synagogue in Germany, in which, in addition to weapons and explosives, a rifle manufactured with a 3D printer was used.  

The General Information Commission is at the forefront of the fight against these new forms of crime and currently an Inspector from that Commission representing Spain leads a working group of European police forces, within the EMPACT FIREARMS platform, dedicated to combating emerging threats in this area and, specifically, the response to the threat posed by the three-dimensional printing of firearms. Among the activities planned in this area, an International Congress dedicated to Firearms and Emerging Threats in the 21st Century is planned to be held at the National Police Complex in Canillas (Madrid).

Likewise, the Customs and Excise Department of the Tax Agency, through Customs Surveillance, co-directs, within the framework of the EMPACT FIREARMS platform, the operational action on illicit arms trafficking through parcels.

This operation highlights the synergies created with the joint work between customs police forces and the Ministry of the Interior, and that Spain promotes within the EU through the Action on illicit arms trafficking of the Customs Cooperation Group of the Council of the Union led by the Department of Customs and Excise Taxes during the period 2020-2021.