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Russia’s FSB busts illegal gunmakers in 22 regions

The law enforcers confiscated 95 firearms, 17 kilograms of explosives, 550 detonators, over 5,000 rounds, 167 artillery shells and 16 suppressors

MOSCOW, April 29. /TASS/. The Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB) has smoked out illicit gunmakers in 22 regions of Russia. Seven workshops that had converted non-combat guns to firearms were shut down, the FSB’s press service disclosed Wednesday.

Residents of Moscow, the Moscow Region, Crimea and Sevastopol, the regions of Komi, Mordovia, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk, Khabarovsk, Astrakhan, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Kemerovo, Kirov, Nizhny Novgorod, Omsk, Rostov, Smolensk, Tomsk, Tambov, Tver and Yaroslavl were complicit in the illegal business of restoration of weapons’ combat properties.

"The coordinated operations of the FSB and the Ministry of the Interior have led to seizure of 95 firearms, 17 kilograms of explosives, 550 detonators, over 5,000 rounds, 167 artillery shells and 16 suppressors," the press service said.

The seized guns include AK-74, AKMS, AKS-74U assault rifles; PPS and PPSh submachine guns (World War II-era), as well as Kedr and Skorpion submachine guns; rifles, carbines and shotguns, including those used during World War I (Mosin, Mauser, SKS, TOZ, Saiga, Vepr); pistols and revolves (Yarygin, PSM, Makarov, TT, Walther, Nagant). Besides over 130 main components for guns (barrels, cylinders) and about 5,000 components for ammo, were confiscated.

Seven workshops that converted non-combat weapons to firearms and produced explosive substances were shut down.

The seized weapons were forwarded for forensic examination, whose results will determine whether criminal proceedings should be initiated.

"Operations on exposing and foiling illegal activity on production and sales of weapons continue," the press service said.