http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/259319431.html
Iâm sure no one is caught off guard by the existence of straw buyers. Mexican
cartels hire them all the time to buy weapons inside the United States. The
idea they existed here for street gangs doesnât surprise me at all. What is a
little surprising is the fact that our governments employed people who assumed
that role.
But when I think about it, the two accused women both work or worked in roles
that would bring them into contact with gang members. And we also are familiar
with stories of women responding romantically to criminal personalities. We
might hope it isnât true, but it is a story that is sadly familiar. A lot of
murder victims become victims by inability to resist âroguish charmâ (whatever
that means).
A second theory that occurs to me isnât romance at all but duress. Gangs with
members behind bars recruit accomplices by threats against family members. In
fact, even law enforcement and judicial professionals can be threatened. So we
canât always jump to a conclusion that cooperation is willing.
I worked in banking. And as an employee, I had compulsory training in banking
law pertaining to criminal banking activities. Money laundering is something
every single banking employee must know and be responsible to recognize. Well,
I think there is something called firearm laundering. That is purchases made in
such as way as to disguise the criminal intent. And this article makes me thing
the retail industry dealing in firearms needs similar laws. It is too easy for
people with clean records to be drawn or forced into serving the needs of
criminal enterprises. Banks file SARS reports when âsuspicious transactionsâ
occur. Licensed dealers need a requirement to file suspicious activity when
someone makes the kind of purchases not expected from them. Say a woman goes
from dealer to dealer buying clips or rounds from several. That might cover up
the grand total of purchases, but if law enforcement got the reports, they
could collate the purchases and follow up. Maybe even save someone whose family
has been threatened.
The other thing I seriously think is needed is a change in firearm
identification. Either they need to cast the serial number in such as way that
its removal destroys the usefulness of the weapon. Or better yet, include an
RFID chips during manufacture in the body of the weapon. One benefit would be
return of legally owned weapons to owners. I have a Metro Transit card, and the
transit police have a phone app that reads my card on the LRT. Police could
read gun RFID chips and get an instant history of the weapon when taken off a
gang member. That could also trigger a burglary charge or illegal purchase
charge, too.
These matters involve some difficulty. But that is not excuse for inaction.
Jim Mork
Cooper
Minneapolis