“Operation Texas Kill Switch” to combat 3D printed machine guns

Thanks to the popularization of hobby 3D printing in the state of Texas, we can see a rapid increase in the number of parts used to transform commercially available firearms into fully automatic weapons capable of firing faster than military M4s. Officials caution that this new technology required the work and expertise necessary to build these devices at home.

Due to the increase in switch production and use, U.S. attorneys held a simultaneous statewide news conference in Texas on June 10, and local U.S. Attorney Damien Diggs was a guest at the Beaumont Police Department’s pistol range. In cooperation with the ATF and in an attempt to suppress the production and distribution of lethal devices, Diggs brought to the attention of participants the current threat to society.

“Machine gun conversion devices are extremely dangerous and pose an unacceptable risk to the public and law enforcement,” Diggs said. “They are also illegal, and simply possessing a machine gun conversion device – let alone firing it – carries a hefty prison sentence.”

About an inch long, switches can be made of metal or plastic. Plastic devices can be printed at home using under $1 plastic filament available on Amazon.com.

“We have recently seen an increase in the number of switches on our streets,” Diggs said. “Between 2017 and 2023, Texas-based ATF agents seized 991 switches, of which 490, or approximately 50%, were seized last year.”

According to Diggs, the effects of the increase were devastating. For example, in April 2023, in Dadeville, Alabama, four people were killed and 32 injured in a mass shooting at a Sweet 16 birthday party. Less than a year later, a 14-year-old was charged with double murder after murdering a 16-year-old and a 36-year-old with a switch-mounted firearm in a dispute that began over a shoe theft.

Operation Texas Kill Switch, the U.S. attorney said, will work with Crime Stoppers programs across the state to offer cash rewards worth up to $5,000 through Aug. 31 to anyone with information about machine gun conversion devices in their community.

For more information on how to get involved or submit a tip, visit the Crime Stoppers website at https://833tips. com/.