Strict gun-control communities are themselves responsible for any criminal use of firearms.

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: Anti-Gun lobbyiest argue that the failure for strict gun control in places like DC result from loose controls on guns in neighboring states like Maryland and Virginia. Countries like England, Japan and Australia with strict gun controls have blamed gun smuggling from the United States for their continued problems with guns. This blame has been echoed by the Million Moms March in the activities at the UN in 2000. : A recent article from The Associated Newspapers Ltd. suggest that English criminals can supply the guns they need without smuggling from the United States. It goes without saying that what England can do, DC could do also. So, we may conclude that strict gun-control communities are entirely responsible for any problem with criminal use of firearms. : The Associated Newspapers' article is given below and may be found at: : http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/top_story.html?in_review_id=436153&in_review_text_id=385235 : Yard smashes guns factory : Associated Newspapers Ltd., 08 August 2001 : by Philip Nettleton : An illegal weapons factory making hundreds of guns a year destined for Yardie gangsters has been smashed, Scotland Yard said today. : : Armed officers from the Met's SO 19 unit raided the site in Bermondsey and recovered 12 replica firearms which police believe were about to be turned into working weapons. : Detectives believe the operation was converting two guns every day and had been running for about a year. : Detective Inspector Clive Stevens said: "This was a major find and was a real production line. The guns would have been sold for between £500 and £800 to criminals prepared to kill. It is very rare to discover an operation like this and it could have been arming a large number of criminals." Officers from the Serious Crime Group worked with detectives from Operation Trident, the Met's unit targeting black on black gun crime. : Police recovered 12 imitation semi-automatic 8mm weapons which were new and still in their boxes. They are similar to the guns used by Italian police. : Officers also recovered ammunition which was about to be converted into live bullets, plus a real pistol and two silencers from the caravan in Lovegrove Street. : The gang had sealed off the cul-de-sac by putting a metal bar across the road to stop people entering. The yard contained two caravans and was advertised as a car repair workshop. : Detectives said it appeared the guns had been tested inside the caravan because there were bullet holes in cushions and walls. More than 14lb of cannabis, hidden in laundry bags, was also recovered. Lathes, drills, a range of industrial tools and work benches were found in one of the caravans which was surrounded by abandoned cars. : A 42-year-old man was arrested and is being questioned but officers are still hunting for the skilled workman who converted the weapons and a number of other men. Last month detectives raided an address in south-east London which was also being used to convert replica firearms. The officer in charge of yesterday's raid added: "It takes someone fairly skilled to convert the weapons and all the tools were in place. : "These were not toy guns and were probably imported quite easily from abroad. This has been a successful operation and the closure of these premises will not go unnoticed among violent members of the criminal community." : The raid follows a lengthy undercover surveillance operation. : The firearms have been sent away for laboratory analysis and police expect to make further arrests.

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