Alphecca

Ship Carrying Guns Seized

Reader Noah D. sent me a link to a New York Post story about a huge cache of "assault weapons" on a ship being seized by Italian authorities. Here's a quote:

A Turkish ship headed for New York - and stuffed with thousands of Kalashnikov assault rifles and AK-47s - was seized en route in Italy, authorities said yesterday.

The ship's deadly hoard of more than 7,500 terrorist-grade rifles and machine guns worth more than $6 million was discovered illegally hidden under piles of properly labeled arms in several massive cargo containers, Italian officials said.

The ship MS Adnan Bayraktar, which bears a Turkish flag, had come from the Romanian port of Constanta and was on its way to a stopover in New York when the bust was made, the authorities said.

Documents showed the cargo containers were ultimately headed to a large U.S. company based in Georgia.

Officials refused to identify the business, citing security concerns and the ongoing investigation...

... The weapons' bayonets were still affixed to them, as were cartridges that can hold up to 30 rounds, they said.

The AK-47s had been tampered with so they couldn't be rapidly fired, but the modification was one that could easily have been reversed, authorities said.

The assault weapons are a favorite with terrorists: Osama bin Laden sported one in the now-infamous footage of him taken after 9/11.

Was a distributor obtaining them in hopes of selling them after the phony "assault weapons ban" expires in the Fall? Were they destined for Islamic terrorist cells within the United States? Unfortunately, customs officials are not releasing much information yet.

Irregardless of why the ship was heading to N.Y., I suspect the anti-gun crowd will seize on this story to prop-up their arguments as to why the AWB should be extended.

If any of you have more info on all of this, please enlighten all of us with comments.