Sovereign citizens, preppers and gangsters arrested in police firearms blitz

Police have seized more than 1000 guns and firearm parts and made 184 arrests in a national sting that revealed a scourge of untraceable 3D-printed weapons from the suburbs of Sydney to remote communities in Arnhem Land.

A “full spectrum” of sovereign citizens, doomsday preppers, tech-heads and gangsters were all caught up in the raids.

The Australian Border Force and state law enforcement, including the NSW Police, launched a weeklong crackdown on illicit weapons following a spate of gun violence in Sydney.

These included four shootings within 24 hours across the western suburbs last week and the Croydon Park attack on October 5 which saw a man allegedly open fire on pedestrians, cars and police with a high-calibre rifle.

At least 281 privately made weapons or parts were seized during the operation.

Police seized 270 firearms, 89 firearm parts, 19 imitation firearms, 10 privately manufactured or 3D-printed firearms, and 130 privately manufactured or 3D-printed firearm parts in NSW alone.

NSW Police laid 206 charges against 45 people, with top police saying they came from “all walks of life”.

“They were the full spectrum of society,” Detective Superintendent John Watson, commander of the State Crime Command’s Drug and Firearms Squad, told the Herald on Tuesday.

“People interested in firearms, some without criminal histories. But then on the other end of the spectrum people with obvious mental health issues, fixated people, those with sovereign citizen ideals and doomsday preppers. And organised crime – no question – OMCG [Outlaw Motorcycle Gang] bikies as well.”

One Sydney man’s haul allegedly included two silver handguns, seven slingshots, an imitation Glock and revolver, five batons, pepper spray, 3700 rounds of ammunition and 10 rifles improperly stored in Strathfield.

A 41-year-old Sydney man faced Liverpool Local Court last week after police allegedly caught him in the process of trying to print part of a firearm in Hinchinbrook.

Another man in Gosford was charged with 14 offences after police allegedly seized privately manufactured Glock-style pistols, holsters and magazines.

The ABF and police said 3D-printed guns were posing an increasing threat, particularly when paired with imported components.

“Imported firearm parts can be constructed with other privately manufactured parts, creating dangerous and untraceable weapons filtering onto our streets,” Australian Border Force Commander Graeme Campbell told reporters.

Just a few days before the blitz, tactical officers swooped on a crew of alleged would-be hitmen who were headed to a Sydney day care to carry out a gangland execution.

“We’ve come across a kill crew that was intent on killing someone, and they were in possession of privately manufactured firearms,” Watson said.

“What we’re finding is that organised crime are involved, and we’re seeing that privately manufactured firearms are becoming more prevalent.”

The National Illicit Firearms Working Group is a collaboration between the border force, federal police, state crime agencies and New Zealand police.

Its investigators conduct research on the seized firearms to trace how they entered the country.

“Last financial year the ABF detected over 8000 illegal firearms, their parts, and accessories at the Australian border,” Campbell said.

“In the wrong hands these firearms could be deadly.”

Campbell said firearms were being imported to Australia, in part or in whole, from “everywhere” including the United States.

Many of the 3D-printed guns seized in Australia are high-powered handguns, Watson said. The technology is improving and allowing more complex and “absolutely lethal” designs to proliferate.

In June 2022, a Brisbane teenager was charged with printing a fully functional semiautomatic rifle, capable of firing 15 rounds with one pull of its trigger, for less than $40.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated, two weeks later, with a homemade shotgun.

In October that year religious extremists in Queensland killed two police constables and their neighbour using commercially made guns.

Meanwhile, sovereign citizen Dezi Freeman remains on the run in regional Victoria, months after he allegedly killed police officers Neal Thompson and Vadim De Waart-Hottart and wounded a third officer.

Freeman allegedly used a homemade firearm in the ambush, which jammed before he could fire on a fourth officer, police claim.

“We don’t want another Port Arthur,” Watson said.

“It’s always at the forefront, we pivoted and our laws became the strongest in the world.”

Watson wants people to know that obtaining blueprints for guns constitutes serious criminality, and he hoped Australians would talk to their children about the risks and report concerns to authorities.

“We need to make sure that there’s lots of education and public awareness around this particular threat, this trend of 3D printing,” he said.

“You should not print a firearm or a firearm part. It carries 14 years in NSW. It’s serious offending.”

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