Milojko Brzakovic, a spokesperson for the factory, tells the AP that the semi-automatic gun's serial number matched one his company delivered to an American online arms dealer in 2013. That the online arms dealer was Century Arms, which is headquartered at 430 South Congress Ave., in Delray Beach.
The gun in question, an M92 — or "shortened Kalashnikov" — is a semi-automatic weapon used for hunting and sporting, and is legally sold in the U.S. It's sold for about $460 apiece in the United States.
"It cannot fire barrage fire, only single shots," explains Brzakovic.
Brzakovic tells the AP that his factory exports around 25,000 hunting and sporting guns each year, and that he's not sure if this gun was maybe turned into an automatic once it was delivered.
In 2013, Century Arms put out a video advertising the M92, touting it as a "brand new firearm made by the famous Zastava arms factory in Serbia."
The video goes on to say the gun is an "AK design in miniature" for "compact use."
The video also says the weapon uses AK-style magazines.
On its website, Century Arms says the weapon "can only be purchased by an 01 firearms dealer." According to the Department of Justice, an "01" firearms dealer can include pawnshops. The fee to get a Federal Firearms License ranges from $30 to $200, and covers the first three years.
According to FFL123.com, a company that helps people obtain firearms licenses, a storefront is not required to obtain an FFL license and people can obtain licenses to run gun-dealing businesses from their apartments. The website thetruthaboutguns.com explains that "The application process consists of filling out a few forms including the application itself, a form to certify your citizenship in the US, and FBI fingerprint cards."
The question then is, how did the weapon make it's way from Century Arms here in Florida., back into Europe?
The AP report says that it remains unclear how the weapon made its way into terrorists' hands, but Brzakovic insists that all the weapons his factory exports from Serbia are under strict governmental control.
From the AP:
"We submit a request to our government to give consent and authorize the export. Until we receive that, we make no contract. Once we get a permission to export, we make a contract and arrange the dynamics," [Brzakovic] said. ... "Here's where the weapons ended, there's the data. Zastava cannot be blamed for where it went afterward."A message seeking comment from Century Arms by New Times was not immediately returned.
