A Taichung police investigation has uncovered Chinese-manufactured weapons being sold on online platforms Shopee and Ruten.
The Taichung City Police Department’s Second Precinct said last week that it discovered that sellers suspected to be Chinese were openly selling Chinese-manufactured “miniature cannons,” “double-kick mortar fireworks” and “mini mortars” to Taiwanese consumers.
The “miniature cannons” were advertised as a hot-selling item to be used as tabletop paraphernalia and reminiscent of “70s childhood nostalgia,” said precinct chief Chou Chun-ming (周俊銘).
Photo courtesy of the Taichung Police Department
The “double-kick mortar firework” was labeled as handmade with a recoil system, available in two models, a 38cm barrel retailing at NT$2,819 and a 28cm barrel at NT$2,077, he added.
Once Taiwanese buyers placed an order, the weapons were shipped directly from China, he said.
The products could cause harm or death and, due to their design and capabilities, the “miniature cannons” were classified as non-standard firearms under the Firearms, Ammunition and Knives Control Act (槍砲彈藥刀械管制條例), he added.
So far, seven buyers have been punished under the act, he said.
The National Police Agency’s Criminal Investigation Bureau has notified the shopping platforms to remove the products from their sites and has requested that the Ministry of Finance’s Customs Administration increase border checks to prevent the products from being imported, Chiang said.
Possession of a non-standard firearm might result in a prison sentence of five years or more, Chou said, warning the public not to buy such items to avoid criminal charges.
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