A student printed two guns using a 3D printer whilst claiming they were props for a University Film project.
In what is believed to be the first case of it’s kind, in the UK, Mr Tendai Muswere admitted making a revolver and handgun from plastic resin.
The find came whilst officers were searching his London flat for drugs after a tip off was received in October 2017. The 26 year old from Zimbabwe was found to have evidence of cannabis cultivation and cannabis plants. The gun itself was determined to be capable of firing a lethal shot.
Muswere’s internet history suggested he’d been online looking for video clips detailing how to create viable firearms. He later denied the suggestion that he was actively looking to create a projectile weapon. Born in Harare the student maintained that the weapons were for a film production despite seemingly searching for more durable components, including a replacement firing pin and barrel, on Amazon.
Subsequently he pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a prohibited firearm and two of manufacturing a weapon under the 1968 Firearms Act.
Hugh Morgan, Prosecting at Southwark Crown Court said, “He was, at the time, a student. The contentious issue, in a nub, is it is all very well saying you were making a film, but why did you need a lethal weapon? There is no need for a lethal weapon, why had it been adapted?”
The revolver, known as a Washbear Revolver, was first created in 2015 by an American engineering student who subsequently posted the specifications online. The handgun, Hexen pepper-box, came into existence in 2013 and was seemingly the first known attempt at building a weapon via a 3D printer.
Muswere was suspended from London South Bank University shortly after the Metropolitan Police notified them.
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