C.B.P. News Release

Tacoma Seaport U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers Seize Shipment of Machineguns

(Wednesday, February 24, 2010)

Tacoma, Wash. – On Feb. 8, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Tacoma Seaport seized a shipment of 30 machineguns (M-4 automatic rifles) that arrived in a 40-foot ocean container on Oct. 20, 2009.

40 M-4 automatic rifles described as toys were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Tacoma Seaport. With modifications, the rifles could be altered to fire live ammunition.

The shipment, shipped from a manufacturer in Taiwan, manifested only as “Toys and Partsâ€