He says the influx of firearms has contributed to an increase in violent gun crime in Canada. Police are trying to reduce the number of guns through things like Toronto’s current gun buyback program, which pays $200 for long guns and $350 for handguns. By Friday, two weeks into the three-week program, it had collected 1,235 firearms. But even as programs like this seek to get guns out of circulation, fresh ones are being added through the black market.
The Relationship Between Drugs, Weapons, And Human Trafficking On The Darknet
Securely buy guns online today without revealing your identity and shop with confidence on the dark web. The data shows that people who “illegally traffic firearms, whether it’s out of a trunk, at a gun show or online, are responsible for real violence in this nation,” including hundreds of shootings, said ATF Director Steve Dettelbach. People who got them through unlicensed dealers bought 20 weapons on average, compared to 11 guns for straw buyers, according to the report. “The data shows, therefore, that those who illegally traffic firearms whether its out of a trunk, at a gun show or online are responsible for real violence in this nation,” Dettelbach said. “In short, you can’t illegally help to arm violent people and not be responsible for the violence that follows,” he said. The report also shows that the recipients of trafficked firearms were people who had previously been convicted of a felony in almost 60 percent of the cases in which investigators were able to identify the background of the recipient.

Global Synthetic Drug Markets: The Present And Future
The guns were used in 368 shooting cases, which are harder to investigate because unlicensed dealers aren’t required to keep records of their sales that could allow federal agents to trace the weapon back to the original buyer, said ATF Director Steve Dettelbach. New data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives shows that 68,000 illegally trafficked firearms in the U.S. came through unlicensed dealers who aren’t required to perform background checks over a five year report that was released Thursday, April 4, 2024. While international arms sales are tightly regulated, it’s perfectly legal for Americans to sell guns to each other without background checks—so long as the sellers are not “engaged in the business” of dealing firearms.

Russian Market
Cybersecurity experts should pay close attention to these trends, as they often indicate emerging threats and profit-generating tactics among the cybercriminal forums. The Abacus Market links to the new dark web marketplace sections and took over much of the vacuum left by the AlphaBay takedown. There’s also a privacy angle—some users live in countries with censorship or surveillance, and the dark web gives them a space to communicate or access information more freely.
The South Sudanese Civil War
DarkOwl analysts also considered the very real probability that the threat actor offering these services is a scammer. In other areas of the world, like Europe, there is more reliance on weapons purchases via the darknet; one underground marketplace advertised itself specifically as a provider of guns to the European Union. Darknet weapons dealers from BMG (Black Market Guns) advertise that the weapons have not been used, arrive in the original manufacturer’s factory condition, and originate from NATO stockpiles. Some of the photos of the weapons on offer include visible serial numbers and others are stock photos sourced online. Most darknet services offer worldwide shipping with some exceptions to Russia due to their strict import controls. As a premier establishment located in Dark Web, Black Market Guns operates as a reliable gun store amidst the demand for dark web transactions.
Gun Licenses For Sale

As noted by Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda, Damirchilo cited “unnamed and unverified reports.” Iran has allied with Russia in its war with Ukraine. Furthermore, there have been numerous efforts by reputable news organizations to debunk various claims attempting to suggest Ukraine sells arms to Hamas. Police in Winnipeg said this week that the number of homemade firearms seized on the streets has spiked from three in 2016, to more than 60 last year. “You will see a gun, a firearm purchased in the States for potentially $200 to $300, and they’ll go on the streets in Canada for $3,000.” Join the growing community of satisfied customers who trust Black Market Guns for their firearm needs.
See Countries Where Black Market Ships Firearms
- That includes more than 260 murders and more than 220 attempted murders, according to the report.
- Detailed investigations and oversight reports on Ukraine-related spending can be found on the U.S. government’s Ukraine Oversight webpage.
- He indicated he had multiple buyers and could get us more guns,” said Agent Zamaloff as the undercover video showed Brady, a heavyset man wearing jean shorts that went just passed his knees, showing off pistols and putting a bag full of guns in his car’s trunk.
- Some interviewees told how people without criminal records, known as “cleanskins”, were tasked with buying guns for criminals.
- The report also shows that the recipients of trafficked firearms were people who had previously been convicted of a felony in almost 60 percent of the cases in which investigators were able to identify the background of the recipient.
Illicit firearms also contribute to political conflict and instability in South Africa, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. The second-highest share of firearm-trafficking cases investigated by ATF was straw purchases, when someone buys a gun for a person who can’t get it legally themselves. Increased oversight of gun dealers is critical to prevent irresponsible and dangerous transfers of firearms. Giffords Law Center works in all 50 states to change policies and challenge injustice. We won’t rest until every state has strong gun safety laws and every community is free from the fear of gun violence.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Dark Web Marketplaces
I mentioned these studies and the agents agreed that criminals will find a way to arm themselves if they so desire. U.S. and Ukrainian officials have implemented strict auditing measures to track military aid. Keith Kellogg, a former national security advisor under the Trump administration, said that “inspector generals are on the ground in Ukraine” monitoring weapons transfers and financial aid to ensure accountability.
It is one of the most active and up to date markets and always provides new and updated malware and data. Established in 2019, Russian Market is a well-known and highly regarded data store on the dark web, specializing in the sale of PII and various forms of stolen data. Despite its name, the marketplace operates primarily in English and serves a global audience. It has gained a reputation for being a reliable source of high-quality data for cybercriminals. The data shows that up to 59.9 percent of the firearms sold across the 12 examined cryptomarkets originate from the US—the world’s largest exporter of conventional weapons. A darknet marketplace claiming to be affiliated with CJNG discovered by DarkOwl analysts offers drugs for sale.
These included small arms, such as, pistols, assault rifles, grenades, Claymores, knives, machetes, etc. Larger weapons such as missiles, light machine guns, mortars, anti-tank missiles, tanks, and planes were also used. Leader of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia, Charles Taylor, helped to create the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in Sierra Leone.
Online purchases of drugs are often delivered to a mailbox or a “dead drop” location, or sellers utilize mail services or international trade networks. Countries geographically close to the United States likely do not need to purchase firearms on the darknet and can rely on direct smuggling across the border. For example, it is estimated between 70% and 90% of guns recovered at crime scenes in Mexico can be followed back to the US drug cartels who smuggle them across the border. Understanding how firearms move globally within these unregulated networks is crucial to addressing their impact on society. This article explores the mechanisms behind the illegal trade, including smuggling routes, innovative manufacturing methods, and the supply chains that feed illicit markets.
He admitted to taking “approximately 59” guns into Mexico and illegally selling others in Oklahoma and Texas. Jump, the other straw purchaser, pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators. His attorney did not respond to requests for comment, but said in court documents that Jump is “a family man with strong values,” who’d never been arrested previously. Like Villarreal, he told the court that he’d fallen on hard times during the pandemic and was trying to make some extra cash by selling guns. There’s at least one other federal case aside from Villarreal’s where a seller on Armslist told investigators he was involved in shipping guns to Mexico. Army soldier, eventually pleaded guilty to illegally importing or manufacturing firearms and was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison.
Firearms For Sale Worldwide
In conclusion, there is no credible evidence that American weapons sent to Ukraine are ending up in Mexico, Syria, Gaza or any location outside of Ukraine, and claims otherwise may be attributed to Russian disinformation campaigns. The United States and Ukrainian governments have attempted strict oversight of their weapons — to mixed results — but any arms trafficking happening in Ukraine appears, as of this writing, to be contained to isolated incidents by criminals. It is not clear whether specific reports about Ukraine selling weapons to Mexican drug cartels, Hamas, a militant group in Gaza at war with Israel, or Syrian rebels started as Russian disinformation. “There is a demand for these guns, these firearms, and there’s definitely going to be a market,” he says, and the potential for profit will continue to fuel straw buying and smuggling without deterrents. Information compiled recently by data aggregation platform Echosec showed how illegal weapons are available for purchase on the dark web, an encrypted part of the internet where the black market flourishes. Crowley calls it a “pipeline” — guns smuggled across the border from Detroit into Windsor, and then to cities across the country.

However, arms trafficking by criminals is still a legitimate potential issue within Ukraine — as it usually is in regions of conflict. Still, Winkel says the proposals meant to stop it — including broadened background checks, licence verification and extended mandatory record-keeping by gun retailers that includes details of the gun and who bought it — would not be effective because the real issue is a lack of enforcement. “Straw purchasing” is when a legal Canadian firearm licence-holder buys a gun and then sells it on the black market. Chief Saunders says the changing sources of firearms and how they’re circulated is a growing concern. “It’s going to be a whole new script, and it will be borderless when it comes to anyone that is motivated to access or use a part.” Police also say 3D printers and other devices are being used to either make guns, or create parts that turn some firearms into automatic weapons capable of firing many more rounds a minute.