![How Guns Flow from Legal to Illegal Commerce How Guns Flow from Legal to Illegal Commerce](https://www.atf.gov/sites/default/files/media/2018/06/illegal-flow-of-guns.jpg)
How Guns Flow from Legal to Illegal Commerce
Legal Trade in Guns
- You start with the gun manufacturers.
- Then, you have the dealers.
- Next comes law-abiding gun owners.
- Legal private sale.
How guns enter illegal commerce
Guns enter illegal commerce through one of three ways.
- By private transactions in which guns bought and later sold at gun shows, flea markets, or through private sales to prohibited persons.
- By straw purchasers who are individuals who buy guns from dealers and transfer them to the prohibited persons.
- By theft where firearms are stolen from gun dealers and private citizens.
Gun traffickers transfer guns from legal commerce to illegal commerce and are considered to be violent criminals.
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Publish Date:
Thursday, June 14, 2018