Publication

Criminals purchase weapons unable to fire live ammunition legally and at low costs across Europe, converting them into lethal firearms with little to no training or expertise. Users of such converted weapons include petty criminals, organized crime groups, and terrorist actors. But what is the true nature of the threat posed by this problem? This report responds by looking at 1) the types of converted firearms; 2) the history and scale of the threat; 3) the different illicit uses of converted firearms; 4) the profiles of those who convert such weapons and smuggling patterns; and 5) the regulatory and law enforcement reaction to the problem across Europe.