ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson says he's seen more problems with criminals that have 3D printer add-ons to guns, than ghost guns themselves.
Whether it's ghost guns, suppressors that reduce the noise from gunfire, or other add-ons to handguns made by 3D printers, the U.S. Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says they are being recovered at crime scenes at a growing rate.
"They are able to be purchased on the dark web through foreign countries," said Pearson, who added his office in recent years has confiscated five semi-automatic pistols with an add-on made by a 3D printer.
"It turns a semi-automatic firearm, which is legal to have, into a fully automatic weapon, which is not legal," added the sheriff.
Ghost guns and add-ons used in crimes can't be traced. They are usually put together by those who order parts online.
Two years ago, a 14-year-old boy in Vero Beach was shot to death by a fellow teen showing off his ghost gun.
"He had it in his hand," said Vero Beach Police Chief David Currey at a 2022 news conference. "The deceased went to grab it. And it accidentally went off."
Sheriff Pearson says the guns and the add-ons are easy to get and deceptively marketed.
Pearson showed examples of suppressors, or what some call "silencers," that can be found online advertised as automotive engine parts.
"Our greatest threat when it comes to the gun world, is people purchasing these illegal parts overseas, have them delivered to their homes, and then doing the self-modification," said Sheriff Pearson.
Pearson added that criminals are more likely to use standard manufactured guns than ghost guns for the same reason as law-abiding citizens do. They work better.
