On Jan. 2, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) said the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has nearly 14 million records of firearms applications that failed a national background check because of "unique prohibiting events."
According to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), out of those recorded cases, 47,930 denials were issued to illegal immigrants between Nov. 1998 and Nov. 2023.
FAIR explained that even though the 13.9 million unique prohibiting events cataloged in the FBI database represent events and not individual illegal aliens, the data still points to "large numbers of migrants in the market for firearms."
The group warned that "the dangers posed by largely unvetted illegal aliens possessing firearms" have significantly worsened over the past three years because the administration of President Joe Biden has "presided over record numbers of new illegal aliens entering" the United States.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported the seizure of 547,610 illegal weapons in 2023 alone, including ammunition, gun parts, silencers, scopes and even body armor. Additionally, there were 1,147,497 recorded weapons seizures in 2022. It is unclear how many of those illegal firearms were taken from the ownership of migrants.
Charlie Bollenbaugh, a gun shop owner in Arizona, said that even though there are many laws about firearms, "criminals are criminals" and that they can find ways to circumvent said laws. He added that it can also be difficult to confirm who is a U.S. citizen when they enter gun shops to purchase firearms.
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However, Bollenbaugh said there is a legal process that can help shop owners filter out the ineligible buyers.
In Arizona and other states, a gun buyer must first show a valid state driver’s license or government-issued photo ID along with proof of their age and residency. The buyer must also have no felony convictions.
Bollenbaugh said if a buyer is legally allowed to purchase a firearm and they have followed all the necessary procedures, the government tells shop owners like him that it is safe to proceed with a sale.
He added that customers are unable to purchase guns if they don't go through a valid background check and present a government-issued ID. (Related: ICE data: Illegal immigrants have less than 5% chance of getting deported under current Biden administration policies.)
Illegal gun purchases by criminals still happen despite efforts to track gun transactions
In 2019, the then-Democrat-controlled House of Representatives passed a bill that required federal background checks for all legal firearms sales and transfers.
A Republican-sponsored amendment that would have required gun dealers to report to federal immigration when an illegal immigrant tried to buy a gun was also included in the bill. However, the provision failed passage in the Senate in a heavily partisan vote.
In a written statement released after the vote, Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL), sponsor of the amendment, criticized Democrats who showed "their true colors" after they rejected the amendment.
The congressman added that they are not interested in "preventing gun violence or stopping the illegal purchase of firearms," only in limiting the rights of law-abiding U.S. citizens "to advance their political agenda.”
In some southern border states like Texas, crime involving illegal immigrants is a serious problem.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety (TDPS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has reported that more than 422,000 criminal aliens were booked into Texas jails between June 1, 2011, and December 31, 2023. Out of those cases, at least 300,000 were categorized as illegal aliens by the DHS.
The TDPS also reported that illegal aliens committed more than 509,000 criminal offenses, including burglary, drug offenses, theft, sex crimes, kidnapping and homicide.
According to CBP data, there were 15,267 arrests, with 307 for weapons offenses, last 2023. Early in 2024, there were 3,104 noncitizen arrests by CBP, with 48 cases involving weapons violations.
Bollenbaugh said illegal gun purchases by criminals are common despite serious efforts by law enforcement to track all firearm transactions and serial numbers in the U.S. He added that it is also illegal for a U.S. citizen to buy a gun for someone else if they are not authorized to own a firearm, which includes illegal aliens.
A gun purchase by proxy is called a "straw purchase," and Bollenbaugh explained that such a purchase occurs if someone knowingly fills out the 4473 and background check because they are aware that the other person who wants the gun is unable to acquire it legally.
At MPP Guns, a store in Phoenix, gun manager Henry Escobar shared that their rules are very clear when purchasing a firearm. He said that if there are customers who visit them in groups of two or more, it is their policy to have everyone in the group present a valid ID.
If a customer presents an ID from another state, they will be turned down at his shop. Escobar added that they always ask potential buyers if they are "a citizen, from out of state, or a permanent resident."
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