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Luigi Mangione’s Ghost Gun Was Only Partially 3D-Printed, Experts Say

The handgun police say Luigi Mangione used to fatally shoot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is nearly as recognizable as the now-famous alleged shooter himself—and shows just how common and lethal these weapons have become.

The community devoted to 3D-printed firearms quickly identified the suspected murder weapon as a particular model of printable ‘ghost gun‘—a homemade weapon with no serial number, created by assembling a mix of commercial and DIY parts. The gun appears to be a Chairmanwon V1, a tweak of a popular partially 3D-printed Glock-style design known as the FMDA 19.2—an acronym that stands for the libertarian slogan “Free Men Don’t Ask.”

The FMDA 19.2 is assembled from a combination of commercially produced parts like barrels, slides, and magazines—sometimes sold in kits—and a homemade frame. Because that frame, often referred to as a ‘lower receiver’ or ‘lower,’ is the regulated body of the gun, 3D-printing that piece or otherwise creating it at home allows DIY gunmakers to skirt gun-control laws and build ghost guns with no serial number, background check, or waiting period.

It’s yet another wrinkle in the complicated picture confronting those who wish to regulate these weapons and keep them out of the hands of criminals.


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