Capping an investigation that began almost two years ago, separate trials are scheduled this month in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., for a civilian Navy intelligence official and a hot-rod auto mechanic from California who prosecutors allege conspired to manufacture an untraceable batch of automatic-rifle silencers.
The exact purpose of the silencers remains hazy, but court filings and pretrial testimony suggest they were part of a top-secret operation that would help arm guerrillas or commandos overseas.
The silencers — 349 of them — were ordered by a little-known Navy intelligence office at the Pentagon known as the Directorate for Plans, Policy, Oversight and Integration, according to charging documents. The directorate is composed of fewer than 10 civilian employees, most of them retired military personnel.
via Probe of silencers leads to web of Pentagon secrets – The Washington Post.
$1.6 million dollars for 349 silencers. That comes about $4,733,63 per silencer. Silencerco most expensive 30 caliber silencer retails for $1,600 and are done my properly licensed craftsmen.
Expect this case to be buried deeper than the Titanic. Stinks to high heaven.
Hat Tip to Travis B. via Facebook.
The price is so high because the actual product wasn’t the only thing on the table.
Aside from the cost of R&D, which wouldn’t be amortized over a larger production run, there were also the costs of secrecy, and of potential legal costs.
Basic silencer technology was pretty much done back in the XIX century.
That means they knew they were breaking the law
Dang, using NFA items to get some money on the side, that’s convoluted.
If suppressors weren’t NFA regulated, they’d be in the $500-800 range tops for 223/308.
Redtape for the win !
If they were legitimate government sales, any licensed, reputable, company would have been able to build the suppressors, without markings if desired (US military sales are wholly exempt from NFA requirements).
The owner of the manufacturing firm is the brother of the guy who authorized the purchases, for an agency that everyone in the Navy and DoD says has NO LE or military role, and has been involved in BS credentialling (that’s *how* this deal came to light – bogus US Marshall ceds getting issued under the table to guys who had no need, but wanted to carry on base.)
This organization is known as a bunch of Walter Mitty types, desperate to play James Bond. They have NO “field” role whatsoever, and are supposed to be doing adminitstrative paperwork and analysis for actual operators.
Reminds me of the cops that got into trouble using their department official purcahsing authority and discounts to buy “LEO – Only” guns, so they could resell them to their buddies.