WINONA, Minn. – Police found two so-called “ghost guns” on the Near East Side, where juveniles had abandoned a stolen car and fled. Police Chief Tim Williams said the handguns were the first of the non-metal firearms he was aware of in Winona. Without a serial number, the source of the guns is virtually impossible to trace. Hence the term “ghost guns.” One gun was found in a trash bin near where the group of juveniles had scattered when officers arrived to investigate suspicious activity. The second ghost gun was in a nearby parking lot. This was near Fifth and Center streets.
Uncommon color. Almost all ghost guns are a flat black to look like the real thing. Like the real thing, they can be lethal with real bullets.
Ghost guns profile
Ghost guns are un-serialized and untraceable firearms that can be bought online and assembled at home. They are often sold through kits that include all of the parts and often the equipment necessary to build them at home with 3D printing equipment. Generally they are 80% polymer and elude metal detectors. Most kits produce frames that are compatible with Glock mechanisms. They are widely available and can be purchased by anyone, including prohibited purchasers, domestic abusers, and gun traffickers — without a background check. These kits guns are sold at gun shows and online.
A thumbnail history
Kits to make ghost guns were introduced in the United States in the 1990s. They compounded police challenges to track the source of firearms in criminal investigations. The first major producer was Polymer80 of Dayton, Nevada, near Carson City. Just about any hobbyist with a 3D printer can produce ghost handguns and rifles, including military-style war guns like the AR15. A popular machine tool today for numerical controlled milling is a printer from the company Defense Distributed of Austin, Texas. Entry-level 3D printers are about $500. They range up to $4,000. Commercial units go as high as $100,000.