One of the guns used by terrorists to
shoot up Paris on November 13 of last year originated in Phoenix,, AZ and was
sold illegally as part of the Fast and Furious gun walking operation.
And ATF agents did their best to cover
up that information.
A Report of Investigation (ROI) filed by a case agent in the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) tracked the gun used
in the Paris attacks to a Phoenix gun owner who sold it illegally, “off book,”
Judicial Watch’s law enforcement sources confirm. Federal agents tracing the
firearm also found the Phoenix gun owner to be in possession of an unregistered
fully automatic weapon, according to law enforcement officials with firsthand
knowledge of the investigation.
The investigative follow up of the Paris weapon consisted of
tracking a paper trail using a 4473 form, which documents a gun’s ownership
history by, among other things, using serial numbers. The Phoenix gun owner
that the weapon was traced back to was found to have at least two federal
firearms violations—for selling one weapon illegally and possessing an
unregistered automatic—but no enforcement or prosecutorial action was taken
against the individual. Instead, ATF leaders went out of their way to keep the
information under the radar and ensure that the gun owner’s identity was “kept
quiet,” according to law enforcement sources involved with the case. “Agents
were told, in the process of taking the fully auto, not to anger the seller to
prevent him from going public,” a veteran law enforcement official told
Judicial Watch.
It’s not clear if the agency, which is responsible for cracking
down on the illegal use and trafficking of firearms, did this because the
individual was involved in the Fast and Furious gun-running scheme. An ATF spokesman,
Corey Ray, at the agency’s Washington D.C. headquarters told Judicial Watch
that “no firearms used in the Paris attacks have been traced” by the agency.
When asked about the ROI report linking the weapon used in Paris to Phoenix,
Ray said “I’m not familiar with the report you’re referencing.” Judicial Watch
also tried contacting the Phoenix ATF office, but multiple calls were not
returned.
The
only language these people understand is the language of lawsuits. You have to
pry information from them using the federal courts, who have been more than
cooperative in getting government to open up and disclose their wrongdoing. In
this case, leaks from within the law enforcement community aided Judicial Watch
in their investigation. If the documents still exist that confirm this info,
they were likely destroyed long ago with other Fast and Furious docs.
I'm
sure the French government would be very interested in following up on this
investigation. But if the denial by ATF is any indication, the stonewall will
continue and French intelligence will be denied access to any helpful
information.
