Illicit 3D-printed guns are becoming more advanced, more reliable and more available in New Zealand, with growing fears for the potential threat to police and the public.

National Intelligence director Dan Wildy says Police is working alongside the National Organised Crime Group (NOCG) to build intelligence on the sharply rising trend to support investigations into the illegal manufacture of the guns and ammunition using 3D printers.

“The first time we really substantively raised it as something to be aware of in the demand environment was 2013, so they’ve been around for a really long time. But 3D printers have become cheaper, meaning more people can afford to buy them, and the availability of designs has become more prevalent as well,” Dan says.

Police has specific concerns including a potential rise in the prevalence of “ghost guns” – firearms without serial numbers so they can’t be traced.

“If people are able to produce a working 3D-printed firearm with relatively low skill and knowledge, and they can do so anonymously and in a way that circumvents the regulatory systems and process we have in place. That is definitely a concern.

“We don’t want these sorts of ghost guns proliferating. It’s one of the reasons so much has been invested in the Firearms Safety Authority [Te Tari Pūreke] and the regulatory changes,” Dan says.

Another concern is that some firearms are printed to look like toys.

“Many have bright colours made to look like toys… specifically to hide their true nature. This isn’t just a concern because our staff might not recognise it as a functioning firearm but also because a child might pick it up thinking it’s a toy.”

There is also a concern that firearms printed with no metal in them may elude security systems.

NOCG is now seizing an increasing number of 3D firearms from gangs and organised crime groups. The group’s director, Detective Superintendent Greg Williams, knows of at least 58 firearms and 200-300 3D-printed parts recovered over the past five years.

He believes the switch to 3D weapons is partly due to the introduction of the firearms registry, improved relationships with gun dealers and good police work in retail firearms diversion.

“[But] once we shut off one supply source, we’ve got others coming at us, so we have to build resilience in those areas and that includes importation, 3D print and traditional manufacturing,” Greg says.

“People out there are making all sorts of guns that are clearly not made by a gunsmith, so it’s not just 3D printing. It’s that if you get a 3D printer and you’re prepared to do it, there’s a good chance that you’ll end up with something operational. And where we’re finding them is in the hands of organised crime offenders.

“We have even seen examples of commercial operations running,” he says. “We’ve seen situations of serious criminals, really serious criminals, printing their own… in some places businesses are now being targeted because they have really high-end 3D printers.”

New “firearms parts recognition and charging guidance” issued in late January identified the main guns that police are seeing, including the AR-style FCG-9, the PG22 Maverick revolver pistol (made to look like a toy gun) and the Harlot 22LR, a single shot pistol. 

Police can charge unlicensed offenders for possessing 3D firearms or their parts. Legislation was passed in 2020 that also made manufacturing of weapons without the appropriate licence punishable by up to 10 years in jail.

Last October, Oamaru man Matthew Bryan McLaren became the first person in Aotearoa to be jailed (for 26 months) after using a 3D printer to make multiple restricted weapons. An unrelated search by police found he had a loaded 3D-printed pistol, parts and manufacturing tools.

Manufacturing 3D-printed weapons without a licence is illegal but possession of blueprints is not, nor are the weapons considered objectionable items.

Police is exploring whether a ban on having and/or sharing 3D plans for weapons should be introduced, the same as downloading other objectionable material is an offence.

“There’s been a project under way with ESR, police armourers and even the chief censor interested in looking at whether or not they can rule some of those plans as objectional material. But we also want to tie into work being done by international partners,” Greg says.

In most Australian states, possession of 3D gun blueprints is outlawed. Other measures such as how New Zealand and Australia can collectively combat developing 3D technology are being considered by a joint working group – Operation Athena.

“We want to look systemically at how we can make both our countries resilient to this new technology. Could you geolocate 3D printers in Australasia so that they simply will not print those plans? That’s the big thinking stuff that we’re trying to think about here,” says Greg, who has been New Zealand’s Athena representative since 2018.

Greg and Dan agree it still takes skill to manufacture 3D weapons and ammunition – it’s not just a matter of having a hi-tech 3D printer.

“People think that because a printer is a printer, you literally download the file and press ‘Print’. It’s really not that simple. There’s a lot more that goes into it, a lot of trial and error. There are still significant reliability issues that come along with 3D printed firearms. So, it still requires time, skill, money and effort. But over time the concern is, of course, that those things will become easier,” Dan says.

“Even those guys who are really invested in this still have challenges with reliability.”