Queens County man charged with making 3D-printed weapons, P.E.I. RCMP say

A 50-year-old man from Queens County, P.E.I., faces five charges that include firearms manufacturing after police seized a number of 3D-printed weapons last month. 

The accused is being held in custody and is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday for a bail hearing.

On Feb. 24, Queens District RCMP received information that the man was making threats online and arrested him at his home, according to a news release from the P.E.I. RCMP's Federal Serious and Organized Crime Unit, or FSOC.  

Officers executed a search warrant at the home the next day and seized a number of weapons, including knives, a crossbow and several 3D-printed firearm parts. 

The man has been charged with one count each of uttering threats, possession of a weapon while under a court-ordered prohibition, firearms manufacturing, and two counts of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. 

Cpl. Gavin Moore, the P.E.I. RCMP's media relations officer, said this is the first time he's aware of that the seizure of 3D-printed guns has led to charges on the Island. 

"We do know that this is a technology that is being adopted more and more," Moore said. "It's important that, should anybody have any information about the printing of firearms, that they report that and help keep Islanders safe."

3D-printed guns fall into a category of homemade firearms referred to as "ghost guns," in part because they are untraceable. They have no serial number because the printed part of the gun is the receiver, among the parts that are regulated in Canada.

Plans for producing these firearms are readily available online, and the items can be made using a consumer-grade 3D printer.

Moore said the mandatory minimum sentence for firearms manufacturing is one year in jail, up to a maximum of 10 years. 

The FSOC is leading the P.E.I. investigation with assistance from the National Weapons Enforcement Team, a unit of firearms experts that helps the RCMP with weapons cases.