Independent gun shops are identified as the primary suppliers of firearms trafficked from the U.S. to Mexico, accounting for 83% of traced weapons used in crimes across the border. This alarming trend is highlighted by new investigations, revealing that more than half a million dollars worth of guns and ammunition have been linked to a network supplying weapons to the Cartel del Noreste, with specific shops like Zeroed In Armory playing a pivotal role.
Notably, high-powered rifles like .50-caliber Barretts are 60 times more likely to originate from independent dealerships compared to chain stores. This stark statistic underscores the impact of small, licensed gun dealers, further emphasized by the finding that 170 firearms sold to traffickers were later recovered at crime scenes in Mexico. The investigation calls into question the accountability of these dealers, given that shipments of weapons often go untraced.
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