Charges laid in Abbotsford 3D-printed gun case
Posted May 25, 2023 8:55 pm.
Last Updated May 25, 2023 8:57 pm.
Charges have been laid in a nearly three-year-old case against a man who had allegedly been part of an illegal gun manufacturing operation in the Fraser Valley.
The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit – British Columbia (CFSEU-BC) says the investigation dates back to November 2020, when it initially heard about the 3D-printed guns being made.
On May 28, 2021, the CFSEU-BC says it arrested two men and a woman before executing search warrants at four separate home addresses in Abbotsford and Aldergrove.
At one home on Westridge Place in Abbotsford, police found items that confirmed a 3D-printed gun-making operation, along with multiple other “controlled substances.”
The CFSEU-BC says other items seized in those homes include 1.7 kg of methamphetamine and 300 g of fentanyl.
On May 23, 2023, federal prosecutors charged 33-year-old Tyson Saverio Santolla from Aldergrove with counts in firearms manufacturing, possession for the purpose of trafficking, and possession of a restricted firearm without a license.
“Privately Made Firearms represent a growing trend in British Columbia and internationally by which criminals attempt to obtain firearms and to profit from firearms sales,” CFSEU-BC Inspector Joel Hussey explained.
Police say Santolla has been “arrested and released on court-imposed conditions.”
