Prohibited ‘weapons’ seized at LAX
Since the start of fiscal 2025, US Customs and Border Protection officers at LAX Los Angeles airport, working with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), have seized over 1,000 replica firearms and suppressors arriving from China. The shipments, falsely declared as ‘alloy miniature toys’, were destined for locations in the USA.
So far, 953 replica firearms, 111 replica suppressors and 92 abandoned suppressors have been destroyed. “Replicas, easily mistaken for real weapons, can cause tragic incidents,” warned Cheryl M. Davies, CBP director of field operations in Los Angeles.
Federal law requires toy guns and look-alike firearms to have blaze orange tips or markings to distinguish them from real weapons. From fiscal 2022 to date, CBP’s office of field operations has seized 2,890 replica firearms at US ports of entry. (ah)