Notification of Concerns Regarding the Drug Enforcement Administration’s and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Handling of Employee Issued Firearms Pending Destruction

Excerpt:  “The purpose of this memorandum is to advise you of concerns the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) identified with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) handling of employee issued firearms pending destruction. The OIG identified these concerns in connection with an investigation of a recovered privately made firearm (PMF), also known as a ‘Ghost Gun,’ that contained an unserialized frame attached to a slide and barrel of a DEA employee issued firearm. According to DEA records, the slide and barrel were submitted for destruction by the DEA in 2019, yet the parts were recovered during an arrest of a private citizen by local law enforcement in 2023. The firearm was test fired for the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) and determined to be operable. During the investigation, the OIG found that in 2019 the DEA and FBI stored slides and barrels from firearms that were pending destruction in open bins accessible to thousands of DEA and FBI employees and contractors. While the DEA and FBI have both stated that they are no longer storing firearm parts in these open bins, neither agency has policies to address this issue.”